Frixos Dalitis
He maintains in many directions that ideologies and micropolitics have no place in the new Parliament. And that in major and critical national issues political consensus is the goal and often the only way. Her position is important because she is the second in the Democratic Party.
Christiana Erotokritou makes her own reading about last Sunday's election results and throws the ball in the President's court, meaningfully noting that primarily her responsibility is to suppress the phenomena of toxicity and consensus with the other political forces and DIKO is ready to respond positively to such an initiative. It does not stay here. The if. President of DIKO emphasizes that we can not afford to lose a single cent or a minute from the Recovery and Resilience Fund. He notes that the goal of the Democratic Party in Parliament is to consistently and seriously vaccinate critical bills with its own proposals.
-Did you get messages from the ballot box? Are there winners and losers? How do you read Sunday's election result?
-Of course we got the messages. They were, after all, so loud that no one can ignore them. I single out two of these messages. The first message comes from the increased abstention, for another electoral contest. Even more of our compatriots considered the party framework as a whole, ineffective and corrupt and did not participate in the electoral process. In the past, we forgot to abstain a few days after the election. This time, we need to see how to reverse the trend. My proposal is for the new Parliament to create a special committee on this issue with the participation of experts, to see what we need to do as soon as possible. The second message results from the very large reduction of the sum of the parties that participated in the previous Parliament and the parallel very large increase of the percentages of smaller or new parties. It is obvious that in the elections there was a strong protest, which had a specific direction. In any case, I hope we all understood that we need to regain the trust of society. Which we lost lately because we sought to gain impressions by losing the substance. You get the impression easily and inexpensively with an attack on a TV panel. But you gain trust with effort, with actions, with consistency and seriousness. Restoring the trust of the citizens will be a painstaking and long-term effort that does not fit the magic solutions of the moment.
– The argument that those who were deleted and left are to blame, is the solution to the problem for DIKO, which, whether we like it or not, received discomfort from the electorate?
-The split of a party is a real fact, which without a doubt negatively affects its percentages. Much more when it comes to executives who have held important positions in the past and parliamentary seats. That is what happened to the Democratic Party. But it is wrong, which fortunately we did not do, to “hide” behind the split. It is not the only reason. The causes of the negative election result must be sought – something that is already happening – both politically and organizationally.
-Can the new scenario be functional and effective for what needs to be done and the great challenges you have to face as political forces?
– We have before us a new seven-party Parliament. The balance of power has changed. There are many reforms we need to undertake. We have a difficult task ahead of us. I do not know in advance the functionality of the new parliamentary composition but I know that ideologies and micropolitics have no place. In major and critical national issues, political consensus is the goal and often the only way. Certainly, the goal of the Democratic Party in the House is to consistently and seriously inoculate with its own proposals critical bills, to convince for the correctness of its views through dialogue and finally to legislate with the sole aim of serving the well-meaning interest of the place. and our people.
-What does being first in the crosses of preference mean for you and what message does it send for the presence of women in politics? How about the prompt “a woman in the presidency of Parliament?”
-I am honored and moved by the renewal of citizens' trust. In fact, when, after a parliamentary term, the percentage of crosses of preference in relation to the votes of the Party is higher than that of 2016, the price and the emotion are even higher. The responsibility is greater. Which I feel. For the past five years, I have worked, inside and outside Parliament, to promote the positions of the Democratic Party and to propose solutions to critical problems that concern all of us. I continue on the same path, with even greater intensity and determination. As far as the presidency of the Parliament is concerned, gender is not the determining factor. But the ability and the ethos. I want to hope – and I have tried for this with proposals for the Law – that we are dealing with the participation of women in politics and in decision-making in general, in an increasingly substantial way.
-Will you all leave behind the toxicity and the controversies? The mandate of the electorate is consensus and joining forces…
-It is the breach of commitments, populism, opacity and corruption that produce toxicity and provoke intense controversy. I believe that it is the primary responsibility of the President of the Republic to suppress the phenomena that produce toxicity and to seek ways of consensus with the political forces. The Democratic Party is ready to respond positively to such an honest initiative.
-What is the role of women in the new Parliament and what is your opinion on the low representation on the ballot papers and as a result in the representation in the legislature?
-Cyprus in terms of female representation in the Cypriot Parliament lags behind other European countries. Enhancing women's participation remains in demand, but let us not forget that the quota does not automatically rule out substantial injustices against it. The woman fights for many self-evident even today. Especially a woman politician who has to prove her worth twice, pay double the cost and travel twice as far.
But I am saddened by the fact that the state infrastructure that allows the reconciliation of family and work is almost non-existent and is not prioritized. This is a need to change in our country and it goes without saying that such an approach will have a positive economic and social impact on all strata of society.
-What do you think are the issues that should be promoted in the immediate future?
– First of all, everything that needs to be done at the level of Parliament so that not a single cent is lost from the Recovery and Resilience Fund. Time is also an important element here, because the Cypriot economy quickly needs structural and institutional injections to be able to withstand the coming years and recover. So we can not afford to lose a penny or a minute. At the same time, I prioritize the restoration of the credibility of Cyprus abroad but also the delivery of justice for everything that hurt and angered us.
To integrate the messages of society
-Does the fact that two electoral contests follow, municipal and presidential, mean an extension of the pre-election until 2023?
– First of all, the elections should be a celebration of democracy. Not a cause for concern. And this is something we should all strive for. As far as the municipal elections are concerned, they are elections of expression of the local communities and I see no reason to create tensions. After all, our job is inside the Parliament and outside the society and not in the pre-election windows. As for the presidential elections, we still have a way to go in 2023 and I believe that we all understand that this way must incorporate the messages sent by society through the polls.
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