Newsroom
The Council of Ministers announced Wednesday that Maria Manolis Christofidou, provincial secretary of GODISY, will take over as Cyprus’ Commissioner for Personal Data Protection.
Christofidou’s appointment comes shortly after she revealed on social media that her bid to run in the upcoming parliamentary elections had been blocked by the Democratic Alarm party to “not disrupt balances and quotas.” She personally discussed the matter with party president Annita Dimitriou, who reportedly tried to dissuade her from running.
The announcement surprised some coalition party leaders, who called the decision “provocative” and questioned whether the government believed there were no qualified candidates from DIKO, EDEK, or DIPA to fill the role.
Christofidou, daughter of the late Manolis Christofides, a respected figure in the Democratic Rally, said she had considered running seriously. “I am proud of my heritage and the name I carry,” she said. “However, my participation in the upcoming parliamentary elections was deemed undesirable, so the opportunity was not given to me in order to avoid ‘disturbing balances’ and quotas.”
As the new data protection commissioner, Christofidou will be responsible for overseeing the handling and privacy of personal data across Cyprus, a role that has grown increasingly important in the digital age.
Biography
Maria Manolis Christofidou, born September 20, 1978, in Nicosia, is a seasoned lawyer with over 20 years of experience in Cyprus and the UK. She holds a law degree from the University of Sheffield and an LLM in European Law from the University of Leicester.
She is managing director of M. Christofides & Co. LLC, a 50-year-old law firm handling civil, commercial, and public law cases. Christofides is an active member of the Cyprus and Nicosia Bar Associations and contributes to committees on anti-corruption, public sector modernization, and women’s rights.
She also represents Cyprus in the Women’s Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (WICCI) and serves as president of the G100 Political Leadership Wing. Previously, she was on the Board of Directors of Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (RIK) and chaired the RIK Staff Provident Fund Management Committee.
