A strongly worded statement challenges criticism over his use of the Chamber’s venue and his remarks about the municipal administration.
John Cannis has issued a sharp response to Kalymnos municipal councillor Stamatis Koutouzis, following comments about the venue used for his October 16 press conference at the Chamber in Kalymnos.
In a statement dated October 19, 2026, Cannis says Koutouzis, a councillor belonging to Mayor Ioannis Mastrokoukos’s group, questioned why a public venue had been made available to him as a private individual.
Cannis links the councillor’s reaction to his criticism of the mayor and members of the municipal administration. He stresses that his complaint concerns their treatment of him as a Kalymnian living abroad, beyond the political positions he held in Canada.
The statement recalls his parliamentary career and his efforts to support Greek interests in Canada. Cannis also refers to his decoration by the Greek state with the Gold Cross of the Order of the Phoenix.
Central to his response is the description “ordinary Kalymnian,” which he attributes to Koutouzis. Cannis embraces the phrase, saying: “For me, being described as an ordinary Kalymnian is a special honour that I hold in my heart.”
He also criticises the position he attributes to the councillor, raising the broader question of a citizen’s access to a public venue to express their views.
