Cyprus watersports association president Demetris Hadjidemetriou has threatened to go as far as set himself on fire if the sector’s long-standing problems are not solved by the upcoming holiday of Whit Monday (Kataklysmos).
Specifically, if watersports terminals in popular Famagusta district beach area continue to be non-operational because of the Municipality’s tender process that had been stalled due to court procedures.
Kataklysmos holiday is on June 13 this year and traditionally this is when the locals hit the sea waters, marking the official opening of the summer season.
In January, the Famagusta district court threw out a case brought by watersports providers in Paralimni who challenged a tender process launched by the municipality for a renewal of services.
Mayor Theodoros Pyrillis had then said the bidding process would now continue but that existing providers had challenged it.
Because they had demanded that the tender included a condition that bidders should have five years’ experience.
The attorney-general, the mayor said, was of the opinion that such a provision was contrary to legislation and the EU acquis.