Tassos stands back from round two

OUTGOING President Tassos Papadopoulos said yesterday he would not attempt to influence voters in the election runoff on Sunday.

Papadopoulos was ousted from the runoff last Sunday when he came third, losing out to AKEL’s Demetris Christofias and DISY’s Ioannis Kasoulides.

In his statement yesterday, Papadopoulos said he would always be present, “beside the people”, when it came to the Cyprus problem.

“During my term in office and throughout my political career, my thoughts, my decisions and my actions have always emanated from my love for the country and my concern for the people,” he said.

“’I deliver the Republic of Cyprus as an equal member of the EU with a robust economy, a fiscal surplus, with the euro as its currency, with a strengthened welfare state, with new institutions and changes that have made the everyday life of the citizens better. I deliver a Republic which is dignified and respected internationally, stronger than ever, to pursue and achieve the solution we deserve.”

Papadopoulos said that last Sunday the people had chosen the two candidates that would run for the presidency.

“I have always addressed the citizens with respect to their judgment and their free will. It is precisely for this reason, again respecting the free will of each citizen, that I do not wish to attempt, either directly or indirectly, to influence in these elections the vote of the citizens who trust me,” he added.

Papadopoulos secured 31.79 per cent in Sunday’s round. Kasoulides came out ahead with 33.51 per cent and Christofias 33.29 per cent.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.