Let’s be clear: A vote for ELAM is not a protest vote.
It is a vote with a precise meaning, a vote for a party born from the entrails of the Greek neo-Nazi party, Golden Dawn, and one that has grown by capitalising on the confusion and opportunistic flip-flopping of DISY.
It is no lie that there is an informal interdependence between DISY and ELAM, more evident in presidential elections than parliamentary ones. This relationship is evident through the ‘transfers’ of personnel and staff, not only from DISY to ELAM but also in the reverse direction.
A vote for ELAM is not a warning or a reaction to the political establishment but a part of it, an organic evolution of political affairs, and a release of pent-up frustration in service of a newly emerged party.
ELAM does very different things from Golden Dawn, and while it maintains the illusion that its members are ordinary people who help poor families, grandmothers, and prevent foreclosures on primary residences, it lacks a substantial proposal for breaking free from cultural decline, a proposal for the survival of our identity, or an alternative vision for regeneration and redefinition.
Because a vote for ELAM is primarily a vote against democratic patriotism, which has much more to offer in the public debate than the slogans put forward by this particular party. A party that, despite its supposed Hellenic centrism, has nothing to offer regarding our culture, identity, or education.
It has nothing to say about music, theatre, cinema, or the arts. It has no stance on protecting our language, dialect, poetry, literature, folklore, and so many other aspects that are threatened by the postmodern Cypriot reality.
Therefore, a vote for ELAM is a vote for the continuation of decline, for the perpetuation of the same old process, this spectacle called ‘partisan patriotism’, an endless void in public dialogue.
It is a vote that rewards ‘nothingness’, a nationalism unrelated to the identity of our people, a poor imitator of Western (and other) models that divert youth with loud noises, civil war-era babble, military slogans, and barbaric fanfare, all while creating absolutely nothing of value for their country.
It is a vote that perfectly serves those who perceive Hellenism as a regime of folklore flags and black-clad youths in triads rather than a human-centric culture with a strong historical conscience.
A vote for ELAM is not the answer.
However, to be fair, the party establishment has sunk to such levels of decay that it is challenging to find a worthy option to vote for. It is difficult to find a distinct proposal for the future, even when excluding the equally sinful and systemic ELAM.
As even the new players (Fidias, Volt, etc., etc., etc.) either express outdated rhetoric with a sauce of renewal and diversity or offer nothing at all, considering politics and the country as a personal gamble for their ‘channels’ on the internet.
ELAM thrives in this environment, repeating simplified versions of the concerns and problems of the people and exploiting the gaps left by traditional parties, which would have disappeared in other parts of the world.
What a mess we’re in!political decline. vote, ELAM, political establishment
