Former parliamentary speaker Demetris Syllouris and former MP Christakis Giovani were acquitted on Tuesday in Cyprus’s golden passports scandal, after a Nicosia court threw out every charge against them.
The court’s 170-page ruling found that none of the charges had been established. Relatives of the accused broke into cheers and applause when the verdict was read out.
Syllouris said he had kept complete silence for more than five years and wanted to be judged the way the system saw fit.
“I hold no grudge against anyone — not the prosecutors, not the creators of the doctored video, not those who exploited the doctored video for political reasons, nor those who criticised me,” he said.
“I was clean and I remain clean,” he added. “Corruption and cronyism produce wealth — and I have no wealth.”
Syllouris said he intends to continue his longstanding presence in parliament, but took aim at those who had weaponised the issue. “Some made corruption a slogan,” he said. “Corruption and cronyism cannot be tackled through instrumentalisation and political expediency.”
He confirmed he will have no involvement in parliamentary elections and said every future action will be strictly within the law. “I will not act outside the institutional framework,” he said.
“My personal stance does not change and I am not seeking confrontation — only the restoration of truth through the processes of justice.”
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