Deputy Mayor Char. Sougiannis returns to the confrontation between the municipal majority and the main opposition, defending the work of the administration and the Charhalakis faction, but emphasizing that «maintaining legality at every level and respecting the natural, cultural, and human environment of our islands is not only a basic principle but also an ACTION.» He also reiterates the critical questions he addressed to them and to which he said he received no response. The statement follows:
Response of Deputy Mayor H. Sougiannis to the press release of the municipal faction «People First»
THANK YOU VERY MUCH her colleagues in the Municipal Party «People First» In their press release dated 13-09-2021, they published the document dated 29-07-2021 (ref. no. 3646) from the Technical Service of the Municipality to the lawyer Mr. Dimitrios Kalligeros of Nikolaos, which concerned the legality of placing a no parking sign in Chora, Kythira, near the shop of his client, Mr. Dimitrios Kalligeros of Ioannis, Municipal Councilor and President of the Port Fund.
And honestly, I THANK YOU VERY MUCH because I believe that there was no better way to confirm that «for the Municipal Majority led by Mayor Efstratios Charhalakis, compliance with the law EVERY LEVEL and respect in the natural, cultural, and human environment of our islands», except for basic principle, constitutes and ACT.
As Mr. Dimitris Kalligeros of Ioannis (Municipal Councilor and President of the Port Fund) stated official written question to the Technical Service of the Municipality, and received official written detailed response. This is also our fundamental difference with this particular faction, there is a huge and unbridgeable difference: we act formally and institutionally, even among ourselves! We do not hide, we do not conceal, we do not engage in «secret operations.». Even when we disagree or have questions, we document our opinions in a formal manner; after all, this is the essence of democracy. Of course, we would not expect their party to understand all this, as the way in which chose to engage in politics both before and after the elections is rather contrary to the basic principles of democracy (after all, we haven't had a lobotomy, remember...).
Regarding their question ʺfor the measures I took regarding the violations I identified and report in this documentʺ, They are well aware that almost all shops operating in the town of Kythira violate, to a greater or lesser extent, the provisions of Presidential Decree 14-10-2002 (Government Gazette 1009 D/18-11-2002), obviously not intentionally but out of necessity, as this particular Presidential Decree is indeed problematic. However, laws must be obeyed and we must fight to improve them. Moreover, at the informational meeting (July 2021) requested by Mr. Dimitris Panagopoulos and attended by Mr. Nikos Magoulas (in the presence of municipal officials), I was told unequivocally that they are indifferent to the legality of the application of the provisions of the presidential decree. In fact, they stated that if they were running the municipality, they would give everyone permission for everything without question (!!!), interspersing their opinions with a series of other offensive remarks about me, which are not relevant here.
Now, if they have changed their minds and wish to report shopkeepers who maintain display cases (e.g., tourist items), awnings, and other structures in public areas of the country, they have the right to proceed with named complaints either directly to the competent authorities (Y.D.O.M. & E.F.A.), or to the Municipality. We believe that It is NOT the responsibility or obligation of the Municipal Authority to «nails» citizens and professionals.
Finally, it is understandable that they are once again attempting to muddy the waters, as is their usual tactic. carefully avoided answering the critical questions posed to them. However, we return to the essence of the questions posed:
- Why are they so enthusiastic in their support of a businessman who operated a health-related business without a legal operating license for almost three months?;
- Do they agree with the arbitrary practices of certain individuals who, either due to financial considerations or for other reasons, disregard laws, regulations, and public services?;
- On what political or ethical grounds are they demanding that the mayor contact a businessman? and not for the entrepreneur to contact the municipality institutionally and officially?;
The Deputy Mayor
Charalambos Sougiannis
