TRANSPARENCY International (TI-C) officially launched its Advocacy and Legal Advice Centre in Cyprus – ‘I Demand Transparency’ at a press conference yesterday.
‘I Demand Transparency’ will open its ant-graft hotline on 2nd October to receive complaints from victims and witnesses of corruption and, with the aid of the TI-C legal team, will aim to guide and support them.
Nicolas Nicolaides, TI-C’s Executive Manager noted that “In the last survey conducted during August and September 2014, 74% of those surveyed felt they were prepared to condemn cases of corruption.”
A damning EU Commission report on the attitude of Europeans towards corruption published in 2010 revealed that a staggering 94% of respondents considered that corruption in Cyprus was widespread in the police and the wider public sector.
Asked how this corruption manifested, 54% of Cypriots agreed that many appointments in public administration were not attained through merit. Many also felt that corruption was a daily part of life where 30% was in agreement.
Some 40% believe laws were not being enforced, while 43% think there is no real punishment for the lack of enforcement.
Around 45% think politicians are not doing enough to fight corruption.
Corruption complaint submission
The anti-graft hotline will operate on Tuesdays and Thursdays between the hours of 10:00 and 18:00; the hotline number is 70070011
Complaints may also be made through the website: http://www.transparencycyprus.org/apaitodiafania/
By e-mail to: apaitodiafania@transparencycyprus.org
And by fax to: +357 25375655
Mike,
Don’t your observations reflect the behaviour of voters all over the world?
An anti-corruption hotline is undoubtedly a good idea in principle, provided it itself is not subject to corruption. It seems far too many are covering up for others as well as themselves. I think it is integrity that is wanted, may be the meaning of this should be spelt out in such a way that it becomes shameful not to act with integrity?
Corruption in this tiny village called Cyprus is well accepted, if developers don’t pay a sweetener there files in these government offices end up nowhere thus no titles.
Unfortunately the website appears to be only in Greek.
@Ray Atkinson on 2014/10/06 at 7:22 am – If you have difficulties understanding what it says, use Google Translate.
You can imagine the other side taking the complaint from a MOP (member of the public)…
He did what? hahahaha
Hey you lot come and listen to this one, got a real live one on this phone…… Talk about a joke a minute.
Hahaha, now that’s really funny don’t you all think so.
Hey stop laughing you lot, that’s my dad she’s taking about.
Sorry was I supposed to take this seriously? Have these people already forgotten this is Cyprus we are talking about. We all know that in lala land corruption has its own rewards.
Transparency Cyprus sounds great but who is working at this new help line???? Solvit is another help line, and all they have told me is go to a solicitor ???
Once the complaint has been made are these people going to act on it or just put together another survey
“Government is not the solution to our problem, government IS the problem” so stated Ronald W. Regan the 40th president of the U.S.A. in his inaugural speech.
That’s fantastic.
I hope someone actually follows up the reports and we see something happen. The sad thing is that I don’t feel confident that it will lead to anything, as corruption here seems to be operated as more of a web than an individual thing!
(94% of respondents considered that corruption in Cyprus was widespread in the police and the wider public sector)
Will transparency international be transparent enough to show the complaints and the results, or will it just be for reporting….nothing else?
@Ivan on 2014/10/01 at 9:48 am – When you consider that around 10% of the population is employed in the police and the wider public sector – some of them were probably included in the survey!
They need more than one line.
I hope it’s going to be well staffed.
Interestingly it is reported that the survey revealed that “Some 40% believe laws were not being enforced, while 43% think there is no real punishment for the lack of enforcement. Around 45% think politicians are not doing enough to fight corruption”.
And yet astonishingly with a few hollow, rarely delivered but populist announcements just before election time the sheep vote in the same individuals who have spent the last few years fleecing them, lining their pockets, awarding their own businesses contracts and generally enhancing their future financial security while simultaneously ignoring the needs and concerns of the people they are charged to represent.
We will wait to see if this initiative proves worthwhile as my fear is that shredders will be overheating in the rush to destroy incriminating evidence but we can always live in hope as it seems that is all we have left – hope!