Following public outrage triggered by the so-called Videogate scandal, which shows associates of President Nikos Christodoulides in discussions with supposed investors, and mounting demands for transparency over the Social Support Fund, the Fund’s Management Committee has taken a first step toward disclosure.
The Fund has been criticised for allegedly being used as a vehicle for political favour-seeking. Against this backdrop, the Management Committee was forced on Monday to move toward greater transparency.
At a meeting of the Committee, the Republic’s Accountant General Andreas Antoniades, who also serves as treasurer of the Fund, proposed that the body adopt a recommendation made last November by the Auditor General Andreas Papaconstantinou. The recommendation calls for the publication of the names of donors contributing more than €20,000 per year. The proposal was approved with immediate effect.
What changes from now on
As of today, individuals and legal entities wishing to donate to the Fund will be required, if their contribution exceeds €20,000, to sign a consent form allowing the Management Committee to publish their details. Donations made without such consent will not be accepted.
The disclosure of donors will take place at the end of each year, as part of the Committee’s annual report.
Past donations remain undisclosed
The transparency measure applies only to donations made from now on. Contributions made between 2023 and yesterday, which collectively exceed €5 million, remain undisclosed for the time being.
The opposition party Democratic Rally is expected to table a new bill in Parliament in an effort to force the publication of these past donations.
Pressure mounts after the video
The decision to publish the names of major donors, all of whom are private individuals, is widely seen as an attempt to defuse public anger sparked by the controversial video, as well as growing pressure from political parties that have announced plans to seek the abolition of the Fund altogether.
The video implies that, for a major investor to bypass bureaucracy or secure the favour of President Christodoulides, a contribution would need to be made to the Fund. Until yesterday, the Fund was chaired by the First Lady Philippa Karsera, who resigned following the video’s publication. Her brother-in-law Charalambos Charalambous, husband of her sister, also stepped down from his position as Director of the President’s Office.
Auditor General’s warning revisited
The Auditor General’s recommendation on donor transparency was first submitted to the First Lady and the rest of the Management Committee in September 2025 and was included in the findings of the Audit Office report on the Social Support Fund, published on November 4, 2025.
At the time, rather than adopting the proposal, the Management Committee issued a sharply worded statement questioning the Auditor General’s motives. In its announcement, issued on the same day as the report, the Committee expressed “serious concern over attempts to turn a technocratic compliance audit into a tool of political exploitation”, suggesting that Papaconstantinou was acting under the influence of political parties that had been calling since 2024 for transparent donor procedures.
Conflict of interest concerns
The Audit Office report intensified suspicions that the Fund was being used for political leverage and also highlighted potential conflicts of interest. Auditors identified cases in which individuals and companies donated hundreds of thousands of euros while simultaneously holding state contracts or bidding for new ones.
As the report noted, the lack of transparency surrounding the Fund “creates conditions that may give rise to public doubt”, particularly because the spouse of the Fund’s chair was also President of the Republic, with decision-making authority affecting businesses and companies making contributions.
A missed opportunity
According to information from Politis, Auditor General Papaconstantinou repeatedly sought to persuade the First Lady of the need for institutional self-improvement and greater transparency at the Fund. Even in the Audit Office report published in November, he outlined the benefits of voluntarily and immediately disclosing donations above €20,000, arguing that this would significantly strengthen transparency and reduce suspicion.
Those recommendations were not heeded. It is now widely acknowledged within the Management Committee, and particularly by Karsera, that had the proposal been adopted at the time rather than dismissed as politically motivated, calls for the abolition of the Fund might never have emerged.
Karsera stands by her resignation
According to a statement issued on Monday by the Management Committee, its members urged Karsera to reconsider her resignation, arguing that her departure could negatively affect the Fund’s work, which since 2015 has supported students from families facing severe socio-economic difficulties.
Karsera thanked the Committee but reiterated that her decision to step down was final. She stressed that the immediate priority is to ensure that all students who applied and meet the criteria for the 2025-2026 academic year receive their scholarships. The Committee was also informed that 1,800 applications remain pending assessment.