PAPHOS - DISCIPLINARY ACTION AGAINST A POLICE OFFICER FOR SPREADING FALSE OPINION POLLS

Pafos Press 2 May 2024

The Police Headquarters and the Electronic Crime Prosecution Service have been dealing with a case concerning the publication of false news and specifically false opinion polls by a member of the Paphos Police Department for some twenty-four hours.

This is an alleged poll that was published on Social Media and concerns the election of the Mayor of Paphos with the presentation of specific findings that are attributed to a survey conducted by the Symmetron Market Research company whose owner, Michalis Vryonidis, was forced to issue a statement and deny what is falsely spread.

As mentioned by Mr. Vryonidis, who already informed the Police about this and visited the Limassol Police Department regarding this case, he clarifies that:

Michalis Vryonidis, CEO"

"Regarding the results of a poll for the Municipality of Paphos, which is circulating on Social Media and which is shown to have been conducted by the Symmetron Market Research company, I declare that it is false and a product of forgery. We have contacted the relevant authorities and reserve all our legal rights.

Regarding the poll, which has already been deleted from Social Media, it is entitled "The river does not turn" and presents the two gladiators with Evros Loizidis having 44% and Phaidonas Phaidonos 37% with " information" to mention that it concerns a sample of 1118 people who answered in the period 22-24 April 2024. 

It is worth noting, basically and as reported by the pollsters themselves, to collect 1000 samples from a poll, approximately 5000 phone calls need to be made, which is humanly impossible within 48 hours, while no poll so far, in any election contest, has had such a large sample only for a region (Paphos Municipality), not even for the entire Paphos district.

In the photo posted on Facebook and shared by various users, the logo of the Symmetron Market Research company is discreetly placed on the right, while in a question to the person who made the post which company did the research, the answer is repeated: " Symmetron".      

Now the case is in the hands of the Police and its leadership, which launched all those procedures for the investigation which will begin after Easter and is expected to be completed, as PafosPress is informed, before the elections.