Unidentified people set fire to two Paphos Municipality construction sites in the city’s commercial centre before dawn on Sunday, prompting acting mayor Angelos Onisiforou to voice anger on Monday at vandalism and antisocial behaviour by young people, saying some had now crossed every line.
The fire on Kanari Street, at around 4.30am, was put out thanks to the swift response of the Fire Service, he said.
Onisiforou asked what those responsible were trying to prove, whether that they were tough or that they could do as they pleased with no regard for anyone, and warned that anyone who thought this was tough was badly mistaken. “Real toughness is respecting, not destroying,” he said.
Municipal property was no free-for-all, he said. It belonged to everyone and was paid for out of residents’ pockets, and nobody had the right to destroy it on a whim.
He said there was fortunately a security camera at the site, and that he hoped the footage would help identify those responsible. Whoever they were, and regardless of their connections, they must answer to the courts if their involvement was proven, he said.
The city could not try to build a better Paphos while some people undid that work with such unacceptable behaviour, he added, calling for a little respect for the city and for property that belongs to everyone.
