The day after the elections requires collective responsibility, President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, has stressed, sending a message of cooperation to all the newly elected members of the Parliament.
In statements at the Presidential Palace following the 24 May elections, the President thanked all those who worked with "professionalism for the proper organization and conduct of the parliamentary elections," saying that people's decisions are fully respected.
He also congratulated all candidates and political forces for their participation in the electoral process, and sent a message of cooperation to all elected members.
"Our democracy is strengthened through participation, dialogue and debate based on arguments and respect for different points of view," he stressed.
The government, Christodoulides pledged, will continue to work for the implementation of its program, "for a stronger economy, for more opportunities for the new generation of our country, for a more efficient state, for social cohesion, for reforms that improve citizens' everyday life and for a more resilient, more modern and more reliable Cyprus".
Noting that the government is committed to its ideological and political orientation and Social Liberalism, he said that on the basis of this approach, "we will continue - through collaborations, just as we have done until today - to implement policies that society, through the messages sent by today's electoral process, approves".
"These messages encourage us to continue with even greater determination. Tax reform, to mention only a few that we heard during the election campaign, responsible foreign policy, the European Western orientation of our country, security, economic stability and development, effective management of immigration as well as many others are judged in practice and are endorsed by the citizens," he noted.
In this great effort, President Christodoulides said, cooperation with the new House of Representatives will be "substantive, sincere and institutionally responsible".
"Our government will continue to work to achieve convergences where there are common concerns, common priorities and common perceptions of the public interest, without compromise and on the basis of common ideological-political convergences. Citizens judge us all by our ability to provide solutions, implement decisions and respond to their expectations," he noted
Especially, he stressed, "in a period of increased challenges, with the Cyprus issue remaining our top national priority, with the need to continue the great reform effort and with international and regional developments directly affecting our homeland, unity of purpose and institutional cooperation are a national necessity and what the Cypriot people demand of us all".
"The elections are over. The day after the elections requires collective responsibility and effort towards the progress of the country," he underlined.
President Christodoulides noted that with "full respect for the people's verdict, with full awareness of our responsibility and with firm commitment to the interests of the Cypriot people, we will continue to work for a stronger, more modern, more European Cyprus".
"We will continue and intensify even more our efforts for result - oriented policies, strengthen the credibility of our country and respond to the real needs of society. For a Cyprus that moves forward with self-confidence, unity and perspective,” he added.
Replying to a question about the parties supporting the government that do not enter the new Parliament, the President of the Republic said that "DIPA and EDEK deserved, and have proven it, to have been in the new House of Representatives" adding that "they did not succeed in entering the Parliament by some tens, hundreds of votes. They should have been there, they deserved to be in the Parliament".
Asked whether there is possibility of cooperation between the government and some of the parties entering the Parliament, he said that "all these policies that we have implemented since the first day of assuming the governance of the country are based on specific convergences that we saw in the House of Representatives".
These are convergences, he went on to say, that are "based on our ideological and political framework, such as tax transformation, the country's foreign policy, immigration, the economy and many others, which are at the basis of this ideological and political framework, and with this responsibility we will continue".
Asked about the statement of President of the Democratic Rally party, Annita Demetriou, who said that her party would not collaborate with the government, the President of the Republic said that "the position expressed by the President of the Democratic Rally is fully respected."
(Source: CNA)
