Christofias looks set to be the next House President

AKEL leader Demetris Christofias was yesterday emerging as the next House President, following his party's victory in Sunday's Parliamentary elections.

If elected, Christofias will be the first communist President of the Cyprus Parliament, although his party follows a more socialist line.

Christofias moved to the fore after a day of wheeling and dealing among the parties over who would back whom as leader.

DISY leader Nicos Anastassiades said he would stand down as a candidate for the sake of supporting a contender from either DIKO or KISOS. Anastassiades' statement added a new piece to the jigsaw after AKEL, with 20 Parliamentary seats and right-wing DISY with 19 on Wednesday said they would back their leaders for the House presidency, to be decided next Thursday.

Until last Sunday's Parliamentary elections there was nothing but below-the-belt attacks and abuse among the parties. Yesterday it looked more like a game of happy families playing musical chairs as AKEL and DIKO held meetings with other parties in a bid to form alliances ahead of the plenum vote.

After realising that DIKO, with nine parliamentary seats, was not too keen on backing him, Anastassiades proposed that someone from either DIKO or KISOS stood as candidate.

DIKO is expected to play a pivotal role in the elections for the House presidency as well as in the presidential elections in 2003. Anastassiades is seen as seeking an alliance between the three parties to pave the way for a coalition in the presidential elections.

The DISY leader yesterday urged parties not to vote for Christofias because, "as a communist, he cannot represent Cyprus in the EU". But Anastassiades' call seems to have fallen on deaf ears in both DIKO and KISOS.

DIKO executive office, convening yesterday to discuss the situation, remained tight-lipped over the critical decision. After a marathon meeting of his party's executive office, DIKO leader Tassos Papadopoulos said: "All scenarios are on the table."

But according to Cyprus Mail information, DIKO has already decided to favour Christofias. Speaking on the matter on Thursday, DIKO parliamentary spokesman and deputy Nicos Cleanthous appeared anti-DISY, claiming that: "All who co-operate with the party have traumatic experiences and lose their strength eventually."

DIKO deputy Marcos Kyprianou yesterday echoed his colleague saying that, "taking into account the experience we had from co-operating with DISY in the past we tend to be pro-Christofias".

Kyprianou said that backing the AKEL leader would pave the way for an alliance with the leftist party in the presidential elections.

It emerged yesterday that socialist KISOS political bureau on Tuesday decided unanimously to support Christofias, but it was not clear yet whether the party's 82-year old leader Vassos Lyssarides, who has announced he is stepping down, had given up on his ambition to serve a second term as the House President.

Doros Theodorou, deputy of KISOS, which is going through a crisis after its poor showing in the parliamentary elections where it secured only four seats, yesterday left his leader exposed.

Theodorou expressed his surprise that Lyssarides had not yet officially announced the party's decision to support Christofias as House speaker. "I am really shocked. I thought we had already taken a decision on this," said Theodorou. "Lyssarides himself said he would let AKEL know we would back them," the outspoken deputy added.

Theodorou explained that his party had taken this decision because it "favoured co-operations with progressive parties".

KISOS acting-chairman Yiannakis Omirou defended Lyssarides yesterday, claiming that the veteran politician had assured AKEL the party would support their candidate.

But Lyssarides said yesterday KISOS would discuss Anastassiades' idea "if and when it is put to us in writing". Lyssarides has also said that if there was a DIKO candidate his party should back him rather than anyone else.

Meanwhile, the arrival of three new parliamentary parties -- ADIK, New Horizons and the Greens - with one seat each, adds a new element to the mix.

New Horizons' chairman Nicos Koutsou yesterday favoured Anastassiades' proposal to back a candidate from either DIKO or KISOS, "as long as it is not a party leader". ADIK also favoured Anastassiades' proposal yesterday.

The Greens had not made a final decision on whose side to take.

The picture will be clearer in the next week with DIKO's final word coming on Tuesday.

Cyprus Mail. By Melina Demetriou