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The plans for the creation of a School of Marine Sciences and Technology in Larnaca were not canceled, said on the morning of Tuesday, February 22, in the show “Morning Inspection” of Politis 107.6 and 97.6, the rector of the University of Cyprus Tassos Christofidis. While in his own intervention in the show, the former director of the office of the President of the Republic, Michalis Sophocleous, accused the rector and the Municipality of Larnaca of bypassing the agreement.
In his intervention in Politis 107, his 6th rector University of Cyprus Tassos Christofidis, stated that “every university needs new faculties and the University of Cyprus can not be an exception. We need new Schools and the School of Marine Science and Technology is very important for the university. “
Asked if anything has changed in the plans of the University of Cyprus, Mr. Christofides answered that nothing changes. “When the Senate approved the establishment of the School in May 2018, it did so on the condition that it would receive state support and be included in the development budget of the University of Cyprus. When we were asked to prepare the budget, we did it. “
From 15 to 100 million euros
He went on to say that we prepared the budget in a decade, that is, what it will cost in the first year, the second, the third. “When I say cost,” he added, “I mean the building, the equipment, the fees, the staff and the studies.” He also said that it would cost 100 million euros over a decade and explained that the construction cost is 50 million.
Mr. Christofides explained that we are referring to a school of 20 thousand square meters. “If one thinks,” he added, “that the cost for such research projects is two and a half thousand square meters, one realizes that the cost for the building alone will be 50 million.”
Asked if it is the state Mr. Christofides replied that “I am not sure if it is the state”. He also added that he does not know why it was concluded that the project was canceled. “The school,” he said, “is in the plans of the University of Cyprus and when the appropriate funding is given, it will move forward.”
He then explained that the University prepared a study where everything was calculated and it was sent to the competent ministries and the President of the Republic. “Together with the vice-rector”, he continued, “we went to the Municipality of Larnaca and presented all the information to the Municipal Council”.
Asked why the cost from 15 million jumped to 100, Mr. Christofides replied that “in the report of the scientific committee they have seen only the academic aspect. Let me just mention that the cost for a research tank needed for this school, measuring 50 by 50, is from 10 to 15 million “.
He went on to say that these data are in the study of the scientific committee, which did not report the cost of money. “It simply came to our notice then.Regarding the cost of 100 million, Mr. Christofides said that this is in the depths of a decade. “We are talking about a school,” he noted, “which is outside the university headquarters and therefore there are hidden costs. If this school operated on campus, then there would be classrooms, restaurants, computer technicians, clerks, etc. However, in a school that will be away from home, it will have to be supported by additional staff. 97.6:
Michalis Sophocleous: They do not want the School
The former director of the office of the President of the Republic, Michalis Sophocleous, spoke on the subject of the School of Marine Sciences and Technology. and then the creation of the School of Marine Sciences and Technologies was announced in the old leprosarium of the city. Then, as he said, the Municipality of Larnaca and the University of Cyprus decided to bypass the agreement and move the School elsewhere.
He expressed the personal assessment that the rector does not want to have a school elsewhere and is trying to build a second university. “We were caught,” he said, “megalomania. The University is coming with the budget of a second university with a double-digit number of students “.
” The agreement “, he continued,” was made for an apartment building and the university comes with a skyscraper on the beach. This bypass is with the blessings of the Municipality of Larnaca “.
Listen to the speech of the former director of the office of the President of the Republic, Michalis Sophocleous, in the “Morning Inspection” broadcast by Politis 107.6 & amp; 97.6:
The rector reverses the fire
The rector of the University of Cyprus, Tassos Christofides, returned after the intervention of Mr. Sophocles, rejecting the accusations leveled against him by the former director of the office of the President of the Republic. “I am not pleased,” he said, “the fact that Mr. Sophocles attributes intentions to the University of Cyprus. He has said that we do not want the School. We have not said such a thing anywhere. We are realists, pragmatists and we want the School to succeed and we want funding “.
Mr. Christofides revealed that he has a letter from the Ministry of Education stating the following: “The Ministry of Finance, in a letter dated December 14, 2018, (noted that he took office on December 16), informed the Ministry of Education that the state can not at present commit to funding the construction of the proposed School. Regarding the sustainability study carried out by the University of Cyprus, the Ministry of Finance is of the opinion that it should be further elaborated and the budgetary impact should be determined more accurately “.
Continuing, he said that it refers to the cost which was originally submitted without a study, stating that this concerned EUR 15 million. He also clarified that the 100 million euros include the operating costs for the first 10 years. “As I explained,” he said, “the construction cost is 50 million.”
Listen to the second speech of the rector of the University of Cyprus Tassos Christofidis in the “Morning Inspection” broadcast by Politis 107.6 & amp; 97.6:
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