By Martin Hellicar
FORMER Interior Minister Dinos Michaelides yesterday launched an attack on his tormentor, House watchdog committee chairman Christos Pourgourides, labelling him corrupt and underhand.
Pourgourides’ persistent allegations that Michaelides had abused his position as minister for personal gain forced Michaelides to resign last week – despite his being officially cleared of any wrong-doing.
In an midday interview on CyBC radio, Michaelides vented the frustration born of eight months of persistent attacks by Pourgourides.
“We know Mr Pourgourides’ history, we know his past, we know his present, we know his actions both as a professional lawyer and as a deputy and as chairman of the House watchdog committee. We know how he behaves as a person and a citizen,” the former minister said.
Michaelides tried to turn the tables on Pourgourides, claiming he was the one who was guilty of corrupt practices and abusing his position as lawyer and as House watchdog committee chairman. Michaelides complained that his calls for an investigation into Pourgourides’ alleged activities had been ignored by House President Spyros Kyprianou, and he said he had launched an investigation of his own.
Michaelides claimed in the interview that Pourgourides’ attacks on him were part of a plot to scupper the presidency of Glafcos Clerides. He said the Disy deputy had threatened to ‘get’ members of the ruling party if they did not back his anti-Michaelides campaign.
“I left (the ministry) when I realised the attacks were not directed against me but against the President,” the former minister – who has always insisted he is completely innocent – said.
Pourgourides could not be contacted for comment yesterday.
Michaelides came under renewed attack from a different quarter yesterday, with Disy deputy Demetris Syllouris claiming the ex-minister had harassed a government auditor involved in last year’s probe into Michaelides’ finances into resigning from the investigation.
Syllouris did not name the official allegedly maligned, but threatened to do so before the House watchdog committee.
The Auditor-general’s office was instructed to look into the then minister’s financial affairs late last year following Pourgourides’ accusations.
Michaelides was candid in his response to Syllouris’ claims.
He admitted he had encouraged the auditor in question – whom he named as Mr Neocleous – to resign from the investigation team because his wife was the personal secretary of Technical Chamber chairman Nicos Mesaritis, whom Michaelides accused of being adversarial towards him. “He (the auditor) had in my opinion an interest in defending the interests of Mr Mesaritis and should have left (the probe team). He realised this after I gave him a small hint: ‘Are you not Mr Neocleous, the husband of the personal secretary of Mr Mesaritis?’ I said to him. This was all I said to him,” Michaelides told the CyBC. He said the government auditor had not been in any way offended by his prompting.
