Paris Demetriades
I am not sure whether this is yet another syndrome, another symptom of being a small society. Maybe it is. I do, however, feel the need to say that I have always been puzzled by our premature and, I think, overly drawn-out obsession with presidential candidates, something that has become a recurring feature of our still somewhat immature democracy. It is an untimely public conversation that, to be fair, is also embraced by a large and respectable portion of ordinary people.
In Cyprus, premature election talk basically starts every time we have an election, whether parliamentary, local or presidential. The conversation usually focuses much more, and this is what bothers me, on the gossip surrounding the whole thing: who might run, who might get elected and why, rather than on their qualities and whether they are actually suited to public office.
I am not saying that presidential elections are unimportant, or that it is unnatural for political discussions and behind-the-scenes maneuvering to begin one, two or even three years before an election. But the amount of attention given to who will or will not be a candidate so far in advance, and the sheer scale of the conversation that follows, should, I think, make us stop and think. Especially when so many other, much more serious and much more immediate issues are not getting the attention they deserve.
Right now, there are so many issues affecting the daily lives of all of us that should matter far more than a list of names. The cost of living, inflation, and an unprecedented energy and housing crisis, for example, are among the most serious problems our society is facing today. Do we talk about them? Do we bring them into the public conversation and examine them as seriously as we should? Do we hear our political leaders, some of whom may soon appear before us as presidential candidates, address these issues seriously and propose clear, practical ways forward and possible solutions? Do we demand answers when they do not? Do we expect them to address these problems, or are we so consumed by the thousand and one problems of everyday life that it simply feels easier and less painful to speculate about who will or will not run, regardless of their qualifications and suitability?
Think, for a moment, about how dramatic and enormous the changes in our lives have been over just the past three years. I am not sure we have fully grasped them. After all, our phones are constantly distracting us with an endless stream of information, most of which is useless.
Still, asking ourselves just a few questions may be enough to shake us, even slightly, out of our usual way of thinking. What, for example, is the average Cypriot paying today in electricity bills, and what will they continue to pay over the coming months and years? What is the real average salary, and how large are the differences depending on the sector in which each of us works? How easily can a young person, whether alone or with a partner, or a young family in Cyprus afford to buy or rent a decent home? What kind of pension will today's workers receive one, two or three decades from now? How will the system be financed?
And when it comes to issues shaped by regional and international developments, how prepared and resilient are we? How equipped are we to deal with everything from the rising cost of living to possible terrorist attacks and other forms of violence?
To be clear, the issue is not that we are talking about the presidential election. The issue is what this particular conversation may be pushing out of the news cycle. What does it cost us when we spend so much of our mental energy on a list of names?
