Former president Nicos Anastasiades on Wednesday said that he will withdraw from his roles within Disy for the duration of any investigation which is launched into allegations of abuse of power levelled against him by the anti-corruption authority, promising to return once his name is cleared.

“I contacted the leader of Disy, Annita Demetriou, today, and expressed to her my intention to abstain from the meetings of the party’s collective bodies until the truth about what has been levelled at me shines forth,” he said.

He added that he “will not allow anyone to believe that they can harm the party, of which I was a co-founder and served with dedication for the last 50 years”.

His withdrawal comes after Disy MP Demetris Demetriou had called on him to do so, pointing out that other high-profile Disy members who have found themselves the subject of criminal investigations, namely suspended Paphos mayor Phedonas Phedonos and now former MP Nikos Sykas, were both also removed from their roles within the party.

Phedonas and the suspended Lefkoniko mayor-in-exile Pieris Gypsiotis were both removed from their roles within the party until their suspension from their mayoral duties comes to an end.

Sykas, meanwhile, was taken off the party’s ballot for last month’s parliamentary election after allegations against him surfaced at the beginning of the year.

All three men have been accused of domestic abuse, while Phedonos was also accused of rape, with Phedonos’ trial now underway in Paphos.

Anastasiades was accused of both abuse of power and influence peddling, and delivered an hour-long address on Tuesday in which he protested his innocence, before engaging in a terse half-hour question-and-answer session with journalists on the matter.

During that address, he said that all accusations levelled against him by the anti-corruption authority, which had itself investigated allegations made by his former aide and journalist Makarios Drousiotis in his book, Mafia State, were without premise.

He stressed that he does not wish to “attribute bad faith” to the anti-corruption authority, but said that “I do accuse them of lacking the required strong will to resist populism, the prevailing atmosphere created by courts of public opinions, character assassins, and malicious people on the internet.

“What I demand is the immediate appointment of an independent criminal investigator and prosecutor, with a strong personality and recognised prestige, who will complete their work within a reasonable timeframe so that the real truth can shine through as soon as possible,” he said.

He then closed his speech by quipping, “I hope that what I am asking for will not land me on the end of another accusation of exerting undue pressure or abusing my power”.