Rafaela Dimitriadi
Former DISY leader Averof Neofytou submitted his supporting signatures Thursday afternoon for the party’s nomination for the 2028 presidential election, seeking to demonstrate both his appeal among ordinary members and his readiness for the next chapter.
The defining image was the five boxes he brought to the party’s headquarters on Pindarou Street, containing more than 3,000 signatures. Deputy party leader Efthymios Diplaros welcomed him on arrival and, according to sources, is understood to have signed a form supporting Neofytou’s candidacy.
Neofytou’s decision to deliver the lists himself, and to highlight that he had collected six times the required number of signatures, was anything but accidental.
The boxes delivered to the party’s headquarters.
No answer on support from senior figures
Asked whether he had secured backing from leading DISY figures, Neofytou chose to turn the focus toward ordinary party members. What mattered, he said, was the support of thousands of members, describing DISY’s supporters as its “rank-and-file soldiers.”
He also sought to convey a message of unity, speaking of “a better tomorrow, a fair society and a reunited homeland.”
“We have already brought more than 3,000 signatures supporting my candidacy,” Averof Neofytou said.
“The next day must find us united”
Neofytou adopted the same conciliatory tone toward his rival, Giorgos Pamboridis, describing the internal contest as a “celebration of democracy.”
Speaking positively about Pamboridis, he avoided confrontation and acknowledged his rival’s political standing.
“Giorgos is a politician who stands on his own merits and has political views, and I will welcome this healthy competition,” he said.
Looking beyond the contest, Neofytou stressed the need for unity and the goal of a change in government. Yet while he said his aim was for “the next day to find us united,” what he would do if Pamboridis ultimately secured the nomination remains unclear.
The meeting with Anastasiades
In a separate development, Neofytou held a two-hour meeting Thursday morning with former President Nicos Anastasiades, DISY’s honorary president.
As Kathimerini reported earlier, the two appeared to put past disagreements aside and focus on the 2028 presidential election.
They also discussed Anastasiades’ proposal for an advance agreement between DISY and President Nikos Christodoulides, under which the two sides would support each other in a runoff. Neofytou did not appear opposed to the idea.
Pamboridis yet to submit his signatures
Meanwhile, Pamboridis, who says he has collected the 500 supporting signatures needed to seek the nomination, has yet to submit them.
The DISY MP and former health minister appears to have encountered difficulties gathering support in the Limassol district, despite reaching the overall threshold.
Pamboridis has not denied those difficulties in his public comments. He has also highlighted what he considers a paradox: seeking the party’s nomination requires 500 signatures, while running for president of the Republic requires 100.
According to sources, however, he will take a different approach from Neofytou and submit his supporting forms electronically.
