Summary

Apokoronas municipality's sanitation department has issued a formal statement pushing back against claims that €76,056.50 was spent on a single rubbish truck, insisting the sum covers invoices and payment orders for multiple council vehicles. The department says all supporting documents — signed quotes, invoices, and payment records — are available for public inspection and prove the work was properly authorised and carried out. Opposition leader Andreas Kouklinos, the municipality alleges, was already aware of this when he presented the total figure in a misleading way.

Apokoronas municipality fights back over rubbish truck spending claims

The sanitation department of Apokoronas municipality issued a formal press release on October 1, 2026, to counter what it describes as a misleading portrayal of a €76,056.50 expenditure — one that has caused considerable public confusion.

What the row is about

Recent reports and public statements gave the impression that Apokoronas had spent €76,056.50 on a single rubbish truck that had already been taken out of service. The figure was raised — and presented in this way — by Andreas Kouklinos, the leader of the main opposition group on the council.

The municipality says this is wrong. The total arises from a collection of invoices and payment orders that list several different council vehicles, not just one. According to the department, this is plain to see in the original documents, which it says are available for anyone to inspect.

Old debts, properly settled

The municipality also addresses a related question: why were some of these payments made now? The answer, it says, is straightforward. The council had accumulated unpaid bills owed to repair workshops from previous years. When the council's finances allowed, those debts were cleared.

Crucially, the municipality stresses that this does not mean the work was done without proper procedure. Every job, it says, was backed by signed and stamped quotes from the workshops, along with all required accompanying documents, before any work began.

Opposition leader 'was informed'

The most pointed part of the statement concerns Kouklinos directly. The municipality says he had already been told that the payment orders in question did not relate exclusively to the single vehicle — yet he chose to present the combined total in a way that implied otherwise.

Workers defended

The sanitation department closes its statement with a defence of its staff, who it says work hard every day to keep Apokoronas clean and deserve respect rather than unfair targeting. The municipality reiterates that all documents are open to public scrutiny.

Press Release – The truth about the €76,056.50 – They do not concern a single rubbish truck.

October 1, 2026, 1:31 PM

The Sanitation Department of Apokoronas Municipality, prompted by publications and reports presenting the sum of €76,056.50 as expenditure on a single rubbish truck, is obliged to restore the truth with absolute clarity.

The sum of €76,056.50 does not concern only the specific rubbish truck, but the total amount of invoices and payment orders in which multiple municipal vehicles are listed. This is clearly shown by the invoices themselves, the analytical statements and the payment orders, which are made available to any interested party.

Therefore, adding up the specific payment orders and then presenting the total sum of €76,056.50 as expenditure exclusively on a single rubbish truck does not reflect the reality of the documents — and this is the critical point.

The Sanitation Department of Apokoronas Municipality, which is charged with the daily management of a particularly demanding task, cannot be made to appear as a department that "spent €76,056.50 on a grounded vehicle", when the very documents being cited prove that the specific amounts concern multiple vehicles.

At the same time, we must also clarify one further critical point: Apokoronas Municipality had accumulated debts owed to workshops from previous years, and when the Municipality's financial situation and its capabilities permitted, those debts were settled. This, however, in no way means that the works were carried out without the required procedure and documentation. For every job, the required supporting documents were in place even before its execution, including the workshops' quotes bearing stamps, original signatures, and all prescribed accompanying documents.

Consequently, any insinuation that works were not carried out, or that the related expenditures do not correspond to actual works performed, does not cast aspersions only on the Municipality's departments (sanitation department, finance department, elected officials, Secretary General), but casts aspersions directly at the workshops themselves that undertook and carried out the works, submitted their quotes and supporting documents, and certified the relevant details with their signatures.

The expenditures purportedly incurred for the specific vehicle after it was taken out of service concern works and spare parts that were carried out during its operational period and were owed by the Municipality, as is clearly shown by the supporting documents.

Furthermore, the leader of the main opposition, Mr Andreas Kouklinos, had been informed on the matter and knew that the specific payment orders do not concern exclusively the specific rubbish truck. Nevertheless, the choice was made to present the total sum of €76,056.50 in a manner that creates the impression that it relates exclusively to that vehicle.

The Sanitation Department has nothing to hide. On the contrary, it makes the data and documents available to everyone, so that each person can inspect them.

The sanitation workers will not become an easy target for anyone. Every day they fight for a clean Apokoronas and they deserve respect — not unjust targeting, defamation, and the creation of false impressions. The truth lies in the documents and let everyone draw their own conclusions.

Sanitation Department

of Apokoronas Municipality