Former House president Demetris Syllouris will not take the stand in the ongoing golden passports trial against him, his lawyer Chris Triantafyllides told the Nicosia criminal court on Tuesday.

Instead, he said the defence would call two or possibly three witnesses.

Both Syllouris and businessman Christakis Giovani face three charges in a case linked to Cyprus’ citizenship by investment scheme, which came under scrutiny following an Al Jazeera documentary.

The trial will continue on Thursday.

At the previous hearing, the prosecution concluded its case.

Triantafyllides said Syllouris’ witnesses include House secretary general Socrates Socratous, who will provide information on some of Syllouris’ foreign trips, and Elena Papandreou, secretary to the former president of Cyprus.

Papandreou is expected to confirm typing a letter signed by the former president authorising Syllouris and others to promote investment in Cyprus.

Giovani’s lawyer, George Papaioannou, said his client would make a short statement and call at least three witnesses.

The court adjusted its schedule because of a nationwide strike on Thursday over the Cost of Living Allowance, CoLA. The hearing will begin at 9:30am instead of 10am to avoid disruption.

The citizenship by investment scheme allowed wealthy foreign nationals to gain Cypriot citizenship in exchange for significant investments, but the Al Jazeera documentary raised concerns that some approvals were granted improperly.

Al Jazeera aired an almost hour-long exposé of the scandal in October 2020, prompting Syllouris and Giovanis to both resign.

The government then scrapped the scheme, with the European Union having launched legal proceedings over claims the scheme had been used to sell passports to dubious individuals.

A subsequent inquiry found that 53 per cent of 6,779 citizenships granted through the scheme were unlawful,