WHEN Nicosia lawyer Polys Polyviou was appointed, as a one-man committee, to carry out an investigation into the circumstances that led to the killer blast in Mari with the aim of establishing who was politically responsible for the disaster a host of questions were raised.
The most oft-repeated question was whether it was possible for the investigator to apportion responsibility to members of the government that appointed him. And was it wise to have a one-man investigation team considering that the investigator could do as he pleased as there would be nobody to challenge or question his decisions? There were also insinuations that the investigation would be a sham, aimed at absolving the president of any responsibility.
The first two days of the investigation, which commenced on Monday, suggested that the misgivings expressed were not justified. Anyone who has witnessed the way Polyviou had been conducting the investigation would have been re-assured that he had every intention of getting to the truth. He has studied and familiarised himself with all the documents, asks all the right questions and does not give up when he is not given a satisfactory answer.
He has also shown the ability to exercise strong control over the public hearing. He has sensibly prevented the assortment of lawyers representing relatives of the victims and people under questioning from taking over the proceedings and causing chaos. At one point yesterday, he appealed to the attorneys’ good sense and subsequently threatened to conduct the hearing at his office when they carried on interfering.
It was also a smart move to bar TV cameras, because if the proceeding were being filmed the lawyers might have been more inclined to interrupt proceedings. Some lawyers complained about his decision to stop them from asking questions directly, but again it was the correct call. As a compromise they were told to submit the questions to him, in writing, and if he considered them relevant he would ask them. This could be interpreted as despotic behaviour but it was necessary for Polyviou to keep control of the investigation.
We hope Polyviou would continue to conduct his investigation with the same rigour he displayed in the first two days. His biggest test, however, would be next week when President Christofias appears before him for questioning. All eyes will be on the one-man committee, who must avoid showing too much deference when questioning the president, as this could undermine the public confidence he justifiably earned so far.
