The intense political confrontation in Kythira between the «Free Kythira» faction and the municipal government continues, sparked by the repair of a major water leak in the Agios Ilias area. Although both sides confirm that the problem has now been fixed, they fundamentally disagree on the causes of the delay and who deserves credit for resolving the issue.
The Position of the «Free Kythira» Faction»
The «Free Kythira» political faction claims that the water leak had been ongoing for more than two months, causing an unnecessary waste of valuable water resources. In a post, the political group criticized the municipal authorities, accusing them of a lack of preventive planning and arguing that they only take action in response to public pressure and media attention. As they report, the damage was repaired just two days after their own public intervention.
The political faction's post:
«In the end, Free Kythira is effective.".
If you’ve been following our previous posts, you’ll see that we’ve repeatedly emphasized that municipal administration must be based on a sound prevention plan as well as an effective mechanism for immediate intervention when problems arise.
Unfortunately, the municipal government seems to operate differently. Instead of preventing and resolving issues in a timely manner, it often takes action only after they have received public attention. Problem management cannot be based on media pressure or on a «wait-and-see» approach.
A prime example is the major water leak in Agios Ilias, which remained unrepaired for more than two months, resulting in the daily loss of our island’s precious water resources. However, just two days after the issue was publicized by Elefthera Kythira, the problem was fixed.
We won’t dwell on why it took more than two months of inaction and just two days after the issue was made public to resolve the problem. We’ll focus on the positive outcome: the leak was finally repaired, and the needless waste of such a precious resource has been stopped.
»Better late than never.".
Response from Mayor Efstratios Charchalakis
The response from the mayor of Kythira, Efstratios Charchalakis, was immediate; he accused the opposition of populism and seeking to assert itself. Mr. Charhalakis released official documents from the contractor, «PAKTOSI TECHNIKI IKE,» in order to refute the opposition’s timeline.
According to the company's official response dated June 4, 2026 —that is, nine days before the opposition’s first related post on June 13—the Municipality had already sent a written notice to the contractor regarding the issue. Nevertheless, the intervention was delayed by several days, with the facts ultimately confirming the opposition’s position.
What does the contractor's document state?
The document from the engineering firm, signed by the manager, Mr. Stavros Shetakis, provides clear technical explanations regarding the nature of the problem:
- The leak in Agios Ilias was caused by an old water supply system.
- Its definitive resolution was inextricably linked to the completion of the broader project to replace and upgrade the water supply networks (Sector 2: Kontolianika – Agia Kyriaki – Kafinas).
- With the completion of the final connection of the new pipelines and the commissioning of the new pumps at the Kontolianika pumping station, the complete decommissioning of the old network was initiated, which put an end to the leak.
- The company noted that the inability to immediately repair the site stemmed precisely from the fact that the overall connection of the new system was still pending, while at the same time, a worn section of the pipeline to Travasarianika was replaced—work that was outside the scope of the original contract.
The Mayor's post:
«On June 13, the 'Free Kythira' political group published its sarcastic comments about the water leak in Agios Ilias. Today, they told us that the leak was repaired because the municipality and the mayor were shaken by their post.”.
Seriously, do they really need that much self-affirmation?;
Fortunately for the truth—and unfortunately for them—the written record remains. Because the company had been contacted by the Municipality long before the detectives from “Free Kythira” took up the matter. In fact, it had already responded in writing on June 4—that is, 9 days BEFORE their “revelatory” article!
»Despite what everyone else who is banking on populism may say, these projects will be completed, and we will deliver even more!".
Despite the intense political debate over whether the repair was the result of pressure from the opposition or the planned progress of a technical project, the fact remains for local residents that the unnecessary water loss in Agios Ilias has now stopped.
