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DISY MP and former health minister Giorgos Pamborides has declared his intention to seek the party’s nomination for the 2028 presidential election, placing himself in the emerging race to become Cyprus’ next president.
Speaking on Alpha’s “Alpha Kalogeri,” Pamborides said he would contest an internal party election even if he faced senior DISY figures, including party leader Annita Demetriou and former president Averof Neofytou.
Pamborides also made a far more alarming claim during the interview, saying organized crime had penetrated different areas of public life, including politics.
However, he suggested there may be a less bruising way to choose the candidate: The potential contenders could first sit around a table and agree on who has the strongest chance of winning both rounds of the national election.
“If my candidacy does not serve the unity of the party and could lead to the loss of victory, then of course I would step aside,” he said.
His message was clear: He wants to run but says winning back the presidency should come before any individual ambition.
A contest that could divide DISY
Pamborides strongly criticized DISY’s decision to allow party members to choose its presidential candidate.
He argued that forcing leading party figures to campaign against one another shortly before a national election could deepen internal divisions instead of producing unity.
“Who does the rivalry that will develop between the candidates serve?” he asked.
Under his preferred approach, the serving party president should have the first say if he or she wants to run. If another person is interested, DISY’s senior decision-making bodies should first determine how to proceed.
Referring the decision directly to the party membership, he said, risks splitting DISY into rival camps at the very moment it needs to present itself to voters as a credible alternative government.
“We entered this game in the wrong way,” he said.
The warning touches a sensitive nerve within DISY, which has been trying to repair the divisions left by the 2023 presidential election. Former party member Nicos Christodoulides won the presidency after running against DISY’s official candidate, Averof Neofytou, leaving the party outside government and deeply divided over its direction.
For the average voter, the internal mechanics may sound like another political family argument. But the eventual decision will determine who leads Cyprus’ largest opposition party into the next presidential contest, and whether DISY arrives there united or carrying another round of internal scars.
'Organized crime has entered politics’
Pamborides also made a far more alarming claim during the interview, saying organized crime had penetrated different areas of public life, including politics.
He said people linked to organized criminal groups have access to politicians, although he did not identify any individuals or provide details of specific cases during the interview.
“If we do not establish a genuine climate of rule of law, and if politicians and ordinary citizens do not feel that there is security, punishment, and justice, we will not remove the conditions that allow the underworld to enter every aspect of our lives,” he said.
His remarks come amid continuing concern about gangland violence, contract killings, and the ability of criminal networks to build influence beyond the traditional underworld.
The claim is serious. If organized crime figures have direct access to politicians, the issue goes well beyond another police operation or gangland dispute. It raises questions about whether criminal influence can reach public decisions and institutions.
Pamborides did not say whether he had shared specific information with police or other authorities.
For now, his interview has placed two issues firmly on the political table: his own ambitions for 2028 and an explosive allegation about the relationship between crime and politics.
The first will be decided within DISY. The second, if supported by evidence, is a matter for the entire country.
