IT WAS suggested in a recent edition of the Sunday Mail that one way of solving the title deed fiasco was for the government to issue deeds to the lawful occupiers to raise €5bn with this money, in part then being used to write off the €4 billion of toxic debt held by developers.
Whilst I have no sympathy whatsoever for the developers who have got themselves and other innocent purchasers into this position, can it be explained why taxes payable to the government should be diverted to a small minority of people whose lavish life style has lead to this mess in the first place?
Only in Cyprus do we appear to reward failure and corruption. I for one feel most strongly about my money being spent shoring up a developer because they cannot replay a bank loan. If it is good enough for one section of the community, what about all the other citizens who are having problems at the bank?
There is also, rather naively, a belief that after being held so long to ransom that the homeowner will willing support their developer, rather than watch them ‘go-under’. And what about the poor homeowner who now cannot afford to pay the tax because the amount, now due in euros has increased?
May I suggest that the toxic debt is a matter between the greedy bank and the grubby developer who got themselves into their own mess. The government should issue the title deeds and let the two parties involved sort it out by themselves. The problem is, of course, the Government is too closely involved with both parties and only foreign intervention will sort the matter out.
Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2009
