The South Cyprus Audit Office believes there could be confusion regarding the provisions of the proposed law concerning the administration of Turkish Cypriot properties and that it could render the role of the Minister of the Interior ineffective, Kibris Postasi reports.
According Greek Cypriot daily ‘Phileleftheros’, in the memorandum sent by Auditor Odisseas Mihailidis to the Parliament, it was noted that the 15-day period given for the announcement of existing properties, especially those that could be used as workplaces, would favour those who are informed in advance about which properties will be published or those who have insider information.
The article states that Mihailidis also raised the question of who would pay if a migrant bought the right to use a property owned by another migrant with Turkish Cypriot origin and later, if demanded, the property was to be returned to its Turkish Cypriot owner by a court order.
Mihailidis noted that according to the law, instead of providing a Turkish Cypriot house for a migrant entitled to housing, the inheritance procedure could be implemented, leaving the migrant to find and contact the heirs of the property to purchase the right to use it, and they might have to pay money for the right to use it to individuals who could already have “received aid.”
Regarding the article that envisages the leasing of buildings that could be used as workplaces for a period of five years, Mihailidis stated that the rightful owner may not respect this period and may stay in the building for a much longer time.
Mihailidis also expressed the need to clarify who would determine the value of Turkish Cypriot properties and what criteria would be applied regarding suitability for renovation.