The main opposition municipal faction, «All Together, Kythira – Antikythira,» denouncing institutionally unacceptable procedures during the Municipal Committee meeting on July 31, 2026.
At the heart of the complaint is the approval of the contents of the Kythira Municipality’s management competence certification dossier regarding water services. As the faction points out, the relevant dossier was never sent to the committee members for review, nor were specific figures presented regarding operating costs, cash flows, water losses, the water balance, or staffing levels.
«They voted “yes” in just a few minutes»
According to the faction’s announcement, Mayor and Committee Chair Efstratios Charchalakis, along with majority council members Dimitrios Kalligeros and Georgios Kominos, voted in favor of the contents of the dossier during a discussion that lasted only a few minutes.
On the opposition side, City Council members Zacharias Souris and Panagiotis Megalokonomos voted against the proposal. As they clarify, their «no» vote is not due to disagreement with the submission of the dossier itself, but to their refusal to “blindly” approve critical documents that had not been made available to them.
Complaint Regarding Lack of Transparency
The «All Together» faction refers to a practice that borders on sloppiness or the deliberate avoidance of substantive oversight, emphasizing that «urgency cannot be used as a back door to push through decisions without transparency and oversight.».
«The Municipal Committee is not a rubber stamp, and we will not sign or vote on documents we have not read. This practice is institutionally unacceptable and politically shameful,» concludes the statement from the main opposition party..
The following is the relevant press release:
THEY ASKED US TO APPROVE A FILE WITHOUT US KNOWING WHAT IT CONTAINED
At the emergency meeting on July 31, 2026, we were asked to approve the contents of a very important dossier regarding the administrative capacity of the Municipality of Kythira in the area of water services.
Except that they never gave us that file to review. They should have sent it to us, even if only electronically. We needed to study it and understand what we were voting on, and it should be on file with our party as documentation of our vote. We requested it, and we continue to request that it be provided to us.
We weren't simply asked to approve the sending of a document. We were asked to approve the contents of a critical certification file without having been given the file itself.
We did not hear anything specific about operating costs, cash flows, water losses, the water balance, staffing, or issues related to quality and environmental permitting.
During a conversation that lasted just a few minutes, the Mayor and Chairman of the Municipal Committee, Efstratios Charhalakis, and the majority council members, Mr. Dimitrios Kalligeros and Mr. Georgios Kominos, voted «yes» and approved the contents of the dossier.
From our faction, Mr. Zacharias Souris and Mr. Panagiotis Megalokonomos voted «no.» Not because we disagree with the submission of the dossier, but because we refuse to blindly approve documents we have not seen.
Even more striking is the attitude of the two majority council members. Although we pointed out that we did not have the data, they did not seem surprised, did not ask to see the file, and did not ask a single question. They simply voted «yes.».
We do not know whether this is a matter of carelessness or a deliberate choice to avoid substantive scrutiny. We do know, however, what happened: a proposal that would normally require hours of discussion and serious analysis was approved through a fast-track procedure.
Urgency cannot be used as a «back door» to push through decisions without proper notification and oversight. When critical information is neither communicated nor presented at the meeting, that is not transparency.
The Municipal Committee is not a rubber stamp. And we will not sign or vote on documents that we have not read.
This practice is institutionally unacceptable and politically shameful. It is dangerous for the municipality and for the future of our islands.
The relevant decision:
