Centre Diko has sent an ultimatum to main opposition Akel that ongoing efforts towards reaching agreement on a joint 2023 presidential election candidate should end before Easter week which begins on April 18.
The leadership of Diko – the island’s second largest opposition party – plans to meet either on April 14 or 15 for final decisions on the upcoming election, insiders told Philenews.
Diko is strongly disappointed that efforts so far have yielded no results and that an imminent deadlock seems unavoidable, one also said.
In the meantime, a new meeting between Diko leader Nicolas Papadopoulos and left-wing Akel’s Stefanos Stefanou is expected to take place. And that will determine whether there is a prospect for an alliance.
If the result is negative, again, Diko’s Executive Bureau will debate the alternative which is either an autonomous path with either Papadopoulos or deputy leader Christiana Erotocritou as their hopeful.
Another strong possibility is for Diko back ex foreign minister Nikos Christodoulides who seems to be quite popular with a substantial fraction of Diko, according to polls.
In January, Christodoulides had tendered his resignation in an internal power struggle within the ruling right-wing Disy on their candidate for the presidential elections.in 2023.
Christodoulides, appointed in March 2018, had long been viewed as harbouring presidential ambitions, causing friction within Disy whose leader Averof Neohytou is now the party’s nominated runner in the presidential race.
