Christodoulides denies knowledge of proposed €595,000 armoured limousine purchase

Nicosia, Cyprus. President Nikos Christodoulides on Saturday said he had no knowledge of plans to purchase a new armoured limousine costing €595,000 for his use. He said information on the proposed purchase had been deliberately leaked from the House of Representatives to harm him politically.

Security decisions

Christodoulides told journalists he had learned of the intended purchase through the media that morning.

“I was informed this morning by the press about this intention to make a purchase. I knew nothing about it,” he said.

He said decisions regarding presidential security were the responsibility of competent state services rather than the president.

“No president should know about security issues, about how the competent state services decide to proceed in order to safeguard certain matters,” he said.

He added that he believed the prime ministers of Greece and Israel, and the presidents of Egypt and France, were likewise not aware of the details of decisions concerning their security arrangements.

Alleged parliamentary leak

Christodoulides said the House of Representatives had received the relevant information and alleged that someone in parliament had deliberately disclosed it.

“There was certainly a deliberate leak from the House of Representatives, because that was the recipient, as I saw in the reports today, with the aim, apparently, of harming the President of the Republic,” he said.

He said such actions undermined the credibility of people involved in public life and would ultimately negatively affect those responsible.

Personal concerns

Christodoulides also said he had raised concerns with his associates about security arrangements during his movements.

He recalled an occasion when he travelled in his private car with his young daughter because he wanted to spend private time with her as a father.