By Charlie Charalambous
AUDITOR-GENERAL Spyros Christou yesterday pledged that his probe into corruption allegations against Interior Minister Dinos Michaelides would leave no stone upturned.
“The report will be objective, fair and thorough, and based on the facts of the case,” Christou said after briefing his colleagues on how the investigation would proceed.
He said he had appointed three teams of investigators to start collecting the evidence.
“There are three areas of investigation: one team will collect evidence from the Inland Revenue department and the Land Registry Office, the other team will investigate the Immigration department and a third team will check the Companies Registration office.”
But the Auditor-general pointed out that his enquiry could not demand access to bank accounts or take statements from individuals.
“This will need the assistance of the Attorney-general,” said Christou.
He agreed it would be a lengthy and complicated process, but believed the investigation would be completed in weeks rather than months.
“It will take one month maximum to collect the evidence.”
Christou’s findings will be handed over to President Clerides and Attorney- general Alecos Markides for further action.
The probe will get under way in earnest today following Michaelides’ submission of a written response to the 14 allegations of corruption made by Disy deputy Christos Pourgourides.
Michaelides was in defiant mood yesterday after his one-hour meeting with presidential secretary Pantelis Kouros.
“If unfounded, false and fantastic allegations are allowed to create a cloud over a politician, who has a history of decades of service, so that he should resign… then Cyprus would be a jungle.”
The minister suggested Pourgourides was trying to hound him out of office with such “hatred” because he had failed to join his “plot” to overthrow Clerides during his re-election campaign.
And Michaelides turned the tables on his accuser, describing Pourgourides as the “professor of nepotism”, claiming he possessed letters from the deputy asking for “favours”.
The deputy accuses the minister of amassing millions from kickbacks and from his collusion with big business in the distribution of lucrative government contracts.
Pourgourides voiced fears on Wednesday that Michaelides was involved in a deliberate effort to destroy incriminating evidence, and should therefore resign, at least temporarily.
This suggestion was given short-shrift by Michaelides yesterday. The minister said he would stay in office to “fight” the allegations.
“For reasons of political and personal sensitivity a public figure or minister should respond to his obligations to his government, to his family and to his friends.”
Furthermore, Michaelides denied he had any outside “financial interests” other than the hard work he put in at his ministry office.
“I work from seven in the morning until eleven at night.”
