The Cypriot government has destroyed the Coop, socialized damages, privatized profits and now they want to speed up and facilitate foreclosures

The Coop had been under the complete control of the Anastasiades-DISY party government since August 2013. The Coop back then had € 14 billion in deposits, €11.5 billion in loans and € 1.2 billion in shares/bonds. Today the government and DISY are leading it to a coordinated liquidation and indeed they have the audacity to try and attribute responsibilities elsewhere. The grave political responsibilities of the government and ruling forces are self-evident. There might also be criminal responsibilities too.

At the same time, the Anastasiades-DISY government is called upon to give an explanation about the contents of a very bad and damaging to citizens agreement; an agreement on the basis of which, instead of the sellers making a profit, the seller in fact is paying the buyer as well; an agreement that is devoid of any economic logic, given that apart from the more than € 5 billion that has already been given to the Coops, the State is offering guarantees of € 2.6 billion to the Hellenic Bank to offset losses, while shares/bonds worth € 3 billion, which would have been paid off in fifteen years must now be paid off in three years, with a disadvantageous lending from the markets.

In essence, with its approaches, the government has donated Co-operatives to Hellenic Bank and has placed a huge financial burden on the backs of the tax-paying citizens.

No matter what the government and ruling forces says, no matter how many lies they may say and whatever they may resort to in order to cover up their incompetence and expediencies, the truth is there and speaks for itself. Moreover, the European Commission itself exposes the Anastasiades-DISY government, given that it talks about an orderly liquidation agreed with the government and ruling forces on the Coop and at the same time it discloses the behind-the-scenes machinations to Cypriot citizens, stating that “the Commission was able to take this decision taking into account …significant binding pledges made by Cyprus to reform its domestic legal and judicial framework “.

What are these pledges? Faster foreclosures, the transfer of all old cases to the new and easier framework for foreclosures, the abolition of the 80% limit in auctions and many more other dangerous acts.

The government and ruling forces have destroyed the Coop, socialized the damages, privatized the profits, and now they want, without even the minimum safeguarding of the primary family home and small business premise, to speed up and facilitate foreclosures.
AKEL will continue to resist and fight against the anti-social policies and the erroneous practices that end up being to the detriment of the economy, society and taxpayers.

Statement by Aristos Damianou, AKEL Political Bureau member
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 30 July 2018, Nicosia