General News
Meropi Kyriacou Honored as TNH Educator of the Year
NEW YORK – Meropi Kyriacou, the new Principal of The Cathedral School in Manhattan, was honored as The National Herald’s Educator of the Year.
NICOSIA, Cyprus — Lawmakers have let bailed-out Cyprus down at times, the outgoing chief executive of the country’s biggest bank said Nov. 18, adding that “shenanigans” which delayed key laws aimed at helping banks collect on a huge number of bad loans have left him disappointed.
In a scathing critique of Cypriot legislators, Bank of Cyprus CEO John Patrick Hourican said it’s been “embarrassing” for him to explain abroad actions that had delayed and diluted a key foreclosure law that was passed last year.
He said in an interview with The Associated Press that the law is neither strong enough nor its implementation swift enough, hampering the bank’s ability to boost lending and getting the economy growing faster. Legislative gaps — like where auctions on foreclosed property will be held — remain a stumbling block.
The Bank of Cyprus was at the center of a March 2013 multibillion euro rescue deal that forced a seizure of uninsured deposits in the country’s two largest lenders and shuttered the smaller bank.
Although Cyprus has earned plaudits for sticking to its rescue program’s terms, creditors point out that bad loans remain the country’s No. 1 priority. Around half of Bank of Cyprus’ 24 billion euros ($25.6 billion) worth of loans are sour, Hourican said.
Hourican said Cyprus was “poorly treated” by its European Union partners and called the deposit grab a “cardiac arrest” of such scope that confidence in the Cypriot banking system will take many years to fully restore.
Hourican, who took the job in October 2013 and helped put the deeply ailing bank on a firmer footing, conceded that lawmakers have done their bit to satisfy creditors’ demands.
But “populist” rhetoric is prompting some borrowers to hold back from repaying what they owe on the impression they can get a “better deal.”
“The parliamentarians have decided heading into an election year that it’s good to raise populist measures and what they’re doing is driving up delinquencies and not helping us fix them,” Hourican said.
“I would like some maturity and responsibility taken in helping the country driving its legislative agenda, recognizing that depositors of this bank are the victims at this point in time, whether you like it or not.”
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades will plead with bank chiefs Nov. 19 to tackle the bad loan issue more quickly.
“Now we can provide credit to the economy … but it will be turbo-charged by people meeting their obligations,” Hourican said.
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MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS
NEW YORK – Meropi Kyriacou, the new Principal of The Cathedral School in Manhattan, was honored as The National Herald’s Educator of the Year.
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Three Russian missiles slammed into a downtown area of the northern Ukrainian city of Chernihiv on Wednesday, hitting an eight-floor apartment building and killing at least 13 people, authorities said.
ATHENS – The Divani Palace Acropolis, nestled in the heart of Athens, is set to elevate the city's dining and nightlife scene with the grand opening of its much-anticipated rooftop restaurant and bar next month.
NEW YORK (AP) — Sen. Bob Menendez may seek exoneration at his May bribery trial by blaming his wife, saying she kept him in the dark about anything that could be illegal about her dealings with New Jersey businessmen, according to court papers unsealed Tuesday.
It was a close brush with death but a 40-year-old British tourist bitten by a deadly viper while at a yoga retreat on Cyprus is recovering after getting swift hospitalization to counteract the venom.
ATHENS - After Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system - with help from French, American and British fighter jet pilots - knocked Iranian missiles and drones from the skies during an attack, Greece is looking to create a similar protection method.