The head of the “ALMA” movement, Odysseas Michaelides, scored an own goal in his attempt to sabotage the dialogue between AKEL Secretary-General Stefanos Stefanou and MPs Irene Charalambidou and Kostas Kosta on the continuation of political cooperation. Michaelides publicly claimed that the two MPs had not said “no” to his proposal for cooperation in the 2026 parliamentary elections, forcing Kosta to issue a statement of denial, leaving the head of ALMA exposed.
Irene Charalambidou and Kostas Kosta are reaching their term limits, and AKEL’s leadership is exploring ways to make political use of the two MPs after the elections. In fact, last Wednesday, the AKEL Secretary-General held separate meetings with both MPs at the party headquarters, opening a round of discussions about the future of their political cooperation.
However, Michaelides chose to make certain statements that functioned as a form of blackmail against AKEL and its efforts to reach a compromise. Although the ALMA leader said he did not wish to interfere in the internal affairs of any party, he nevertheless sought to present the two MPs with an alternative in case they did not reach an agreement with AKEL’s leadership. If ALMA truly did not want to trespass into AKEL’s terrain, it would have waited for the dialogue between the two MPs and the leadership to conclude before making any move.
Denial
Odysseas Michaelides’ decision to go public with “revelations”, claiming that he had contacted the two MPs by phone and received no negative response to his call for cooperation backfired. MP Kosta not only denied the statements of the ALMA leader but also put an end to the prospect altogether.
In a written statement posted on social media, the MP stressed that he had already made it clear to Michaelides that he had no interest in standing as a parliamentary candidate with ALMA. Political sources close to Kosta told Politis that Michaelides’ remarks put the Limassol MP in a highly uncomfortable position, describing them as a politically clumsy move. They added that Kosta has no intention of cooperating with any party other than AKEL.
No Answer
For her part, MP Irene Charalambidou not only did not deny Michaelides’ statement but also avoided giving a clear answer, saying she has not yet made any decisions. Speaking yesterday on ANT1’s “Mera Mesimeri” TV programme, Charalambidou said she has also spoken with other parties, while stressing: “If I am offered something from AKEL that gives me a meaningful political role, I will of course consider it with full seriousness.”
