CYPRIOT tycoon Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou yesterday said he was launching a campaign to collect donations for the families of the 13 men who died in the July 11 naval base blast.

Haji-Ioannou, founder of the Stelios Philanthropic Foundation, said he was deeply shocked by the incident “and my thoughts go to the families of the deceased.”

Haji-Ioannou said he was surprised that everyone focused on the political angle of the matter and only a few did anything to help the families who lost loved ones in this tragedy.

“Perhaps people on the island are too focused on the political debate to focus on the human dimension of the tragedy,” he said in a written statement.

Haji-Ioannou said he was launching a campaign to collect donations that will be distributed equally among the families.

“I will open a bank account with [the two main banks] and I will make the first donation via my philanthropic foundation of €50,000 to get the process going,” he said. “I hope others will follow and the fund will become even bigger for the benefit of the families.”

He said he would personally oversee the process and the money collected will be distributed through bank transfer to the families within one month of today.

Source : Cyprus Mail