Summary

Mayor Charalampos Koukianakis of Apokoronas has issued a firm public statement in response to new Greek legislation affecting municipal water utilities: water is a public good and a social right, not something to be bought and sold. The municipality established its own water utility, DEYA Apokoronas, precisely to keep water supply under public control, fund infrastructure projects, and guarantee residents access to safe, quality water. For local residents, the message is a clear political commitment against any form of privatisation of water services.

Apokoronas stands firm: water stays in public hands

In a personal statement published on August 3, 2026, Apokoronas Mayor Charalampos Koukianakis delivered one of the most direct political commitments of his tenure: water belongs to the people of this region, and it will not be treated as a market commodity.

The statement was prompted by new national legislation affecting municipal water and sewerage utilities known as DEYA. While the mayor does not detail the law's specific provisions, his response is unambiguous: Apokoronas will not allow water to slip from public control.

Why this matters to every resident

The mayor draws a sharp line between two very different visions of how water can be managed. Under public control, every person in Apokoronas — families, farmers, business owners — is a rights-holder with guaranteed access to clean, affordable water. Under a privatised model, that same person becomes a customer, subject to market forces and profit motives.

"When water becomes a commodity, the citizen becomes a customer," Koukianakis writes. "And that cannot be accepted."

This is not an abstract concern. Across Europe, debates over the privatisation of water utilities have intensified over recent years, and new legislative frameworks can open the door — sometimes unintentionally — to commercial interests in essential services.

What DEYA Apokoronas was built to do

The establishment of DEYA Apokoronas — the municipality's own water and sewerage utility — was described by the mayor as a deliberate strategic choice, not a bureaucratic formality. Its purpose: to set clear rules for water management, attract public funding, deliver infrastructure projects, and ensure that every resident continues to receive quality, safe, and sufficient water.

The mayor points to concrete achievements: infrastructure investments, modernised planning, and ongoing improvements to service delivery. He signals that this work will continue and expand.

A commitment to future generations

The mayor frames water protection not as an administrative decision but as a moral duty — a responsibility that extends beyond current residents to the children and grandchildren who will inherit this region.

"The protection of water is not an administrative choice," he writes. "It is a debt, a responsibility, and a way of life."

For residents of Apokoronas, the practical meaning is clear: water services will remain publicly managed, infrastructure investment will continue, and the municipality will resist any legislative or political pressure that could lead to commercialisation of this essential resource.

Press Release – Water is not a commodity. It is life, a right, and our responsibility.

August 3, 2026, 8:41 AM

Written by the Mayor of Apokoronas

Charalampos Koukianakis

There are issues that allow neither concessions nor compromises — issues that touch the core of our social responsibility and the future of our children. Water is one of them.

In light of the new legislative regulation concerning DEYA, our position remains clear, firm, and unwavering:

Water is not a commodity — it is not a product for sale, nor a field for speculation — it is a public and social good.

The establishment of DEYA Apokoronas was a conscious choice of responsibility and a strategic decision for the protection of the most precious asset of our region. It was not created to serve expediencies, but to shield the public management of water, to set rules, to better organise services, to secure funding, to implement projects, and to ensure that citizens will continue to have access to quality, safe, and sufficient water.

And today we can speak with actions, not words. With significant interventions, with infrastructure projects, with modern planning and with a daily effort whose sole aim is to improve the lives of our residents.

At the same time, we continue dynamically in our effort for the continuous upgrading of the services provided, with modern infrastructure, better service to citizens, and a DEYA that will respond to the needs of today and the challenges of tomorrow.

History has shown that fortresses are not brought down from one moment to the next. First they are weakened, then devalued, and in the end they are lost.

This is why the establishment of DEYA Apokoronas constitutes an important shield of protection — it is our answer to the need for water to remain under public supervision and social control,

because when water becomes a commodity, the citizen goes from being a rights-holder to being a customer —

and this cannot be accepted.

Water belongs to the families, to the farmers, to the professionals, to every person who lives and creates in our region — it belongs to the next generations.

Protecting it is not an administrative choice — it is a duty, a responsibility, and a way of life.

In Apokoronas we chose the path of responsibility — we chose to protect water, to invest in infrastructure, and to create an organisation that serves the individual and society.

And we will continue to serve this position with consistency and determination.

Water is not bought, not sold, and not commodified. It is life, a public good, a social right — and we have a duty to protect it today, in order to hand it on tomorrow to the next generations.