Wholesalers protest outside the palace

Wholesalers demonstrated outside the Presidential Palace on Tuesday, protesting the decision to relocate several warehouses from the Sopaz area in Nicosia, deemed dangerous and outdated.

A delegation of protesters met the director of the president’s office Andreas Iosif and Agriculture Minister Costas Kadis during the demonstration to clarify their demands and voice their concerns.

The wholesalers handed a list of requests to Iosif and Kadis, underlining the need for the continuous operation of the Sopaz warehouses, due to their proximity to the highway and other distribution areas around the capital.

“There is a will to cooperate, we have not yet reached an impasse,” Iosif said.

“Wholesalers have a very important role in Cyprus’ economy, due to their contribution to the island’s supply chain.”

Both Iosif and Kadis reassured the wholesalers that an alternative to the relocation of the Sopaz warehouses is currently being studied.

The Nicosia municipality, however, released a statement criticising the wholesalers for their demands.

“All the efforts we made in recent years to offer an alternative solution to the operation of warehouses in the Sopaz area clashed with the wholesalers’ negative attitude,” it said.

“The Nicosia municipality fully recognises the right of wholesalers, like any other professional group, to protest. However, it judges their demands hasty and short-sighted.”

The statement said the municipality has made several efforts in recent years to deal with the chronic problems of the warehouses in the area.

“The premises have uninterruptedly been in operation since the 1960s. They are outdated and lack modern requirements, such as safety specifications for earthquakes and sanitary conditions,” the statement said.