Charalakis: Harsh verbal attack on Souri and the opposition

In a post of 1,431 words, the Mayor of Kythira, Efstratios Charhalakis, comments extensively on what took place at yesterday's Municipal Council meeting (April 29, 2024) as well as on what has been discussed beyond that in recent weeks in Kythira. He also strongly urges the leader of the majority, Zacharias Souris, to stop presenting himself as an expert on the procedures. Read the full text with the Mayor's views and positions:

«Board meeting on April 29, 2024: Information for all residents of Kythira
After wishing everyone a Happy Easter, I will give you a detailed update on exactly what happened, was said, and was decided at yesterday's City Council meeting (April 29).

However, before I get to the point, I would like to advise certain individuals that it would be wise not to take advantage of the kindness and gentleness of the Chairman of the Board, Mr. Kostas Kapsalis, because this is the LAST time that the Board's Rules of Procedure, which explicitly stipulate specific procedures for the conduct of meetings, have been circumvented. Kostas Kapsalis, because this is the LAST time that the circumvention of the Board's Rules of Procedure will be allowed, which explicitly stipulate specific times for each speaker, prohibits digressions and does not allow speakers to stray from the topic of their presentation, otherwise they will be cut off. I am saying this now so that there will be no misunderstandings in the future. If some people want to talk for hours, they can organize a workshop or a conference, and perhaps we will go and listen to them. The Board of Directors is a collective body that makes specific decisions in a specific manner and according to a specific procedure. Nothing more, nothing less! The Board of Directors is not a sports field or a coffee shop, and we will not allow ANYONE to treat it as such! Period!

And one more thing: Mr. Souris should stop presenting himself as an expert on procedures, because he is NOT. A superficial reading of circulars and laws does not necessarily make him a member of the Athens Bar Association! Municipal employees know very well how to do their job, and we will NOT allow Mr. Souris to tell them how to work nor to constantly distract them from their work with continuous emails giving them «orders» on how to perform their duties. If he doesn't like something, he should appeal to the Decentralized Administration and wherever else he thinks, as some of his colleagues did in the previous term, and the results were evident in the recent elections. It seems that he has learned absolutely nothing from the results of October 8... What a pity...

Let's get down to business now.

During the briefing, I responded in a well-documented manner, as always, to a series of questions and briefly referred to certain important issues:

1. I thanked Member of Parliament and former Minister Mr. Kostas Katsafados for his important interventions regarding a) the maintenance of the transitional criminal court of the Court of First Instance of Piraeus in Kythira with two court sessions per year (June-October), which could be increased by one additional session if there is a large number of cases, and b) the undertaking by the Hellenic National Defense General Staff/MOMKA undertaking the preparation of a Master Plan for the ports of Diakofto, Kythira, and Potamos, Antikythira, as well as the repair of the Diakofto Port Bridge.

2. I was informed that the electronic tender for electric bicycles, financed by CRES (Center for Renewable Energy Sources), was declared void because the tender committee decided that the only company that took part didn't meet the terms of the tender and that there were safety issues for bike users. The same tender was declared void in other municipalities in the Islands Region. The funding body (CRES) has been informed of the further developments. Discounts and half-measures on safety issues are NOT allowed!

3. Construction of the «PAGGAIA – Antikythira Geoscience and Climate Change Observatory» is underway, following the signing of the contract between the contractor ZITAKAT and the National Observatory. The project is funded by the Recovery Fund and the European Investment Bank as «infrastructure of strategic importance.» This is an infrastructure of enormous importance that will bring multiple benefits to the island of Antikythera, but also to Kythira, as the EAA has an office in the Potamos Town Hall, which will soon be staffed.

4. Regarding the recent Regulation on Fire Protection of Properties near Forest Areas, I reiterated that our Municipality is unable to implement it and that a relevant resolution will be voted on at the next meeting of the Municipal Council.

5. The contract for the preparation of the Local Urban Plan for Kythira and Antikythira has been signed. This is extremely important for the Municipality and our islands, as the Local Urban Plan will lay the foundations for the development of our region in the coming years. The contractor consortium will hold on-site consultations with the Municipality, agencies, and citizens.

6. Regarding the announcement made by the Trifyllio Foundation concerning the property in Alimos, I would like to reiterate my complete confidence in the Foundation's President, Dr. Emmanouil Kalokairinos, and its Board of Directors. Because there is a great deal of misinformation on this issue, it would be advisable for those who are concerned to visit the Trifyllio website, where all the financial data and, of course, the press releases on the Alimos issue have been posted. If anyone takes the trouble to read them calmly, they will acquire the knowledge they need to avoid hasty and ill-advised public statements that contribute nothing positive to the case.

7. Regarding the Daycare Center, which has also been the subject of alarming misinformation, I would like to inform you that its Operating License has recently been reissued in accordance with the new provisions, its staff composition is as required for the maximum number of children based on the license (38 are provided for in the license, 28 are currently enrolled), and that the Municipality is taking all necessary steps for its continuous improvement. This year's budget provides for all operating and supply costs, as well as an additional €45,000 for building maintenance and landscaping of the courtyard.

8. Important port studies are being carried out by the Municipal Port Fund, with the aim of including the projects in the port infrastructure program of the NSRF 2021-2027.

9. Similarly, the studies for the expansion of the Gymnasium-Lyceum by KTIP are proceeding normally, with funding from the Attica Regional Operational Program. This project will upgrade secondary education facilities on our island for many years to come.

10. Regarding the Livadi-Kalamos road, disregarding Mr. Georgilas's absurd statements about «moral instigators» (it would be advisable for him to weigh his public statements more carefully), I announced that temporary repairs would be made with concrete at specific points, as work on the sewerage network will begin after the summer.

11. Regarding the recent audit conducted by the Financial Crime Investigation Service (SDOE), I stated unequivocally that our Municipality is always open to any audit (since its establishment, the Municipality has been audited many times by all municipal authorities) by any public authority; moreover, there has not been a single piece of information that has been requested and not provided. I understand that some people gloat over such procedures; it is the only thing left for them to do when they see so many construction sites on our island every day (especially when they themselves know that these will continue to multiply)! I offer them some friendly advice: anyone who has tried to deal with their political opponents by criminalizing the public has condemned themselves to political obscurity. I say this because I have complete confidence in ALL the employees of the Municipality, whom I know well and who try very hard to comply with bureaucratic procedures and labyrinthine legislation, and I demand – at least from the municipal councilors – to respect the efforts and work of our municipal employees, who, although they should be four times as many, are nevertheless struggling to keep the services running and serve the citizens in conditions of extreme understaffing. I will not allow the slightest criticism or suspicion of any employee or elected representative of the Municipality of Kythira, regardless of which political party they belong to. And audits are always welcome because they prove not only the slanderous nature of all the false (pre-election and post-election) allegations, but also the systematic effort we have made in recent years to put the municipality in order. In any case, Mr. «Socrates Fatsas,» who is said to have flooded a number of state authorities with ridiculous slanderous accusations, will soon be exposed, as I have already filed two complaints and the Cybercrime Prosecution Service will do its job well! And then many masks will fall, and the necessary legal steps will be taken, of course....

12. The main opposition party raised an interesting question about what has become of the notorious lawsuit brought by a private individual against the municipality, the one demanding compensation of 4-5 million (!!!), with some saying before the elections that «we would ruin the Municipality,» prejudging—again gleefully—the outcome in favor of the private citizen (we filled Tsirigo with law professors!). The lawsuit—I repeat, the one that would «ruin the Municipality» – WAS REJECTED IN ITS ENTIRETY by a documented decision of the Administrative Court of First Instance of Piraeus, published on January 30, 2024 (but really, didn't they know? Don't they even talk to each other?). And so we were left without rocks... «and now what will become of us without the rocks? The rocks were a solution of sorts»...

Finally, the Board of Directors took decisions on current issues, such as the first (mandatory) revision of the Municipality's Budget and the Port Fund, as well as the provision of a housing allowance to permanent employees of the Municipality of Kythira who do not have their own residence on the island. The balance sheets and financial statements of previous years of our Municipality's NPDD and School Committees were also approved, which was achieved despite the severe understaffing of our Municipality, which makes it impossible to meet binding deadlines for municipalities such as ours, a fact that has been known to the political leadership for years.

I will return with another announcement regarding the fixed advance payment...»