MARDİN - The booklet prepared by the Ministry of Internal Affairs on municipalities where trustees ignored the heavy debts, corruption and favouritism, is refuted by the inspector reports of the ministry.
48 of the municipalities won by the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) in the local elections on March 31, 2019 are run by trustees appointed by the Ministry of Interior today. The municipalities in question are almost everyday, brought to the agenda by corruption and favouritism. The Provincial Administration General Directorate affiliated to the Ministry of Interior prepared a booklet titled "Municipalities Free from Terrorism and their Services" regarding the municipalities where trustees have been appointed. Details of the booklet were reported by columnists of pro-government newspapers on November 14 and Anadolu Agency (AA) on November 18-19. The booklet has not yet been published on the website of the ministry and its affiliated units.
160 MILLION NEW DEBT REFERRED AS 'INVESTMENT'
The booklet also included the Mardin Metropolitan Municipality, where a trustee was appointed on August 19, 2019, which claims like making large amounts of debt after the appointment of the trustee, arbitrary dismissal of municipal staff, corruption, irregularity, embezzlement and bid rigging. The booklet included the claim that "292 million lira debt was paid to the market" for the Mardin Municipality. At the same time, the expenditures made through borrowing were referred as "investments" and it was said that "307 million TL was invested".
However, in the March 31, 2019 local elections, HDP took over the Mardin Metropolitan Municipality from the trustee appointed in 2016 with a debt of 1 billion 20 million TL. After the dismissal of Mardin Metropolitan Municipality trustee Mustafa Yaman, it was revealed that the amount of debt increased to 1 billion 180 million TL after the investigation made by Mahmut Demirtaş, who was appointed as Mardin Governor and municipal trustee.
INSPECTOR OF THE MINISTRY REFUTED THE CLAIM
Even though the booklet of the Ministry claimed that there were no allegations of ill usage during the trustee period, Ministry of Interior Civil Inspectorate officially refuted these claims.
According to the reports of the Civil Inspectorate, crimes such as corruption, bribery, irregularity and favouritsm were detected in the Mardin Metropolitan Municipality under the administration of the trustee.
MA / Ahmet Kanbal