The announcement of the 56 parliamentary candidates of the “Direct Democracy” party of MEP Fidias Panayiotou, for the parliamentary elections in Cyprus, is generating intense discussion on the island. A number of issues concerning the candidate selection process, the party’s provisional statute, the operation of the electronic platform (application) Agora, and the complaints already being raised about some of the candidates are returning to public debate.

“Direct Democracy” presented the process as an open, participatory selection through the Agora application, arguing that the candidates emerged from a vote in which, according to the data released, 16,080 citizens participated. This figure was presented as the main proof that the party is attempting to implement in practice the model it politically advocates. However, no one can verify whether this data reflects reality, since the platform (with closed code) is exclusively managed by Fidias Panayiotou, who was also a candidate and, as announced, came first in votes.

The platform under scrutiny

The first level of questions concerns the very tool (application) through which the process was carried out. The Agora application is already at the center of intervention by the Commissioner for Personal Data Protection, who has requested the temporary suspension of its operation until the required impact assessment is completed and it is examined whether the platform fully complies with the legal framework for processing personal data, especially political opinions.

The issue gains particular weight because this same platform is not simply used as a means of communication or political campaigning, but as the mechanism through which individuals are selected to represent the party in parliamentary elections. With this in mind, the discussion does not only concern technical or legal details, but touches the very core of the candidate selection process.

Fidias Panayiotou himself had rejected allegations of irregularities and had publicly argued that there is no reason to suspend the application’s operation. However, the intervention of the competent Authority remains recorded and now politically accompanies every internal party process that goes through Agora.

“Fidias’… flowers are blooming at the Cyprus ballot box: Candidates with convictions for drug trafficking and investor fraud!”

Leadership with “random” friends

The second level concerns the party’s provisional statute, which has also been the subject of public discussion. The operational structure of “Direct Democracy” provides for a Temporary President and a Temporary Executive Council of three members. This council is appointed by the Temporary President (Fidias Panayiotou) and plays a substantial role both in the functioning of the party and in managing the platform and its related procedures. The members of the Executive Council appointed by Fidias Panayiotou are, as he himself stated, “three random friends of his.”

Closing

The same text provides that the results of procedures can be referred back or re-examined in the event of a technical issue, security matter, or other reasons related to legality and the public interest. It also provides that certain information may not be disclosed if it concerns personal data, technical matters, pending legal procedures, or information deemed confidential. All of this is decided exclusively by the President, who also decides who will be appointed as treasurer and who will be members of the Disciplinary Council.

Pre-selection of individuals

Added to this picture are previous public statements by Fidias Panayiotou himself, who had mentioned that he had approached a number of individuals he considered suitable to be candidates. He had even drawn up a list of around 30 people with whom he wanted to discuss the possibility of their participation in the ballots.
This element does not formally negate the vote that followed, but adds another parameter to the discussion on how the ballot was ultimately formed. Because beyond the electronic participation, it appears that there was also prior political or personal initiative from the leadership side to seek specific individuals.

Investigations and allegations concerning Fidias

All this is unfolding at a time when Fidias Panayiotou himself is facing investigations and allegations. In January, an investigation by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office began regarding possible misuse of European funds. He stated that he has not received any official notification, while no public comment was made by the Prosecutor’s Office, as is usually the case in ongoing investigations.

At the same time, the dispute over personal data protection issues continues, due to the operation of the Agora platform, with new complaints and public responses from him, who speaks of targeted attacks and false news.

The result is that the announcement of the candidates did not take place in a politically neutral environment, but under the shadow of open issues concerning both the head of the party himself and the central mechanism through which internal party operations are organized.

“Fidias’… flowers are blooming at the Cyprus ballot box: Candidates with convictions for drug trafficking and investor fraud!”

Candidates with a “past”

The next chapter opened almost immediately after the announcement of the 56 names. The president of the Democratic Party, Nikolas Papadopoulos, publicly denounced that the “Direct Democracy” ballot includes individuals for whom there are serious issues, referring to a person who had been arrested for drug trafficking in the occupied territories, a person under investigation for obtaining money under false pretenses, and a person who, he said, had been involved in cases of investor fraud during the stock market period.

These references immediately shifted the discussion from the selection process to the content of the ballot itself. Because now the question is not only how the 56 were selected, but also whether there was any suitability screening, how thorough that screening was, and by what criteria it was judged that these individuals could be presented to the electorate. It is worth recalling that a man who had been convicted of raping a minor had been presented as interested in being a candidate, as well as a woman who produced pornographic material and sold it on the platform OnlyFans.

“Yes, I trafficked drugs”

In at least one case, the issue did not remain at the level of political confrontation. The “Direct Democracy” candidate Valerie Tarapai, who ranked third (as a candidate) in the Kyrenia district in the relevant process, publicly confirmed that she had been convicted in the occupied territories in a drug-related case and had served a two-year prison sentence. She stated that the incident concerned 2017, when she was 20 years old, and that today she has no pending issues in the Republic of Cyprus.

Her statement gave a concrete dimension to a discussion that until that moment had been conducted through general political accusations. At the same time, it brought back to the forefront the question of whether the candidate selection process included any substantial background screening, or whether the weight had shifted almost exclusively to the digital vote of the platform’s users.