“Let people sort out who is guilty and who is not,” Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Chair Devlet Bahçeli said on Tuesday in response to the main opposition’s call for a live broadcast of the trial of its mayors accused of corruption.
The statement of the MHP leader is backed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
“I think it is a good proposal and will be good,” Erdoğan told reporters inquiring about his comments on Bahçeli’s remarks on Wednesday.
His statements demonstrate that the government may open trials to public viewing, as minutes later, Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç told reporters in Ankara that it is at the discretion of Parliament.
“A legal article blocks live broadcast, but if Parliament reaches a consensus, it can be amended,” Tunç said.
The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has seen a slew of its mayors detained or arrested since last year on charges of graft. The CHP claims the charges are politically motivated despite a plethora of evidence and testimonies of people confessing that they bribed mayors and municipal bureaucrats. CHP Chair Özgür Özel has repeatedly urged authorities to allow a live broadcast of the trial of their mayors in hearings, especially in the case of their future presidential candidate, former Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu. Recently, authorities have launched an investigation into the leak of a photo of Imamoğlu in the courtroom during his corruption trial, citing laws banning photo shoots at courts.
After Imamoğlu’s arrest in March, more mayors and municipal officials from the CHP were detained and arrested. Some are linked to the investigation into an alleged ring of corruption led by Imamoğlu in Istanbul. On Tuesday, Adana Mayor Zeydan Karalar was remanded into custody after his detention along with the mayors of Antalya and Adıyaman in a corruption investigation. Meanwhile, the mayor of Adıyaman was released with judicial control, while Antalya Mayor Muhittin Böcek was remanded into custody and suspended from office by the authorities. Last week, police also caught a deputy district mayor in Antalya’s Manavgat district red-handed, as he allegedly accepted euros in bribe hidden in a box of baklava.
Addressing his party’s parliamentary group meeting on Wednesday, Erdoğan said the CHP has evolved into a “party of extortionists from a people’s party.” He said the judiciary is investigating “the biggest gang of thieves, the most reckless organized crime gang." He underlined that those who complained about bribes and those who took bribes “were both members of CHP.”
A corruption, extortion and bribery network that began in Istanbul has spread to multiple cities and districts, Erdoğan said. “The tentacles of the octopus in various provinces and districts have begun to be exposed one by one. The situation in other cities is the same. In those places, too, the complaints are mostly from and about members of the CHP,” Erdoğan stated.
“The only thing the judiciary does is to address these complaints, which is a purely legal process, not a political one,” Erdoğan said.
“The CHP is so desperate that they are even trying to blame us for a blatant crime in which euros were found inside baklava boxes during a bribery operation."
Asked about the bribe inside the baklava box footage circulated on the media after Deputy Mayor Engin Tüter was detained, Özel has stated that he was “shocked,” partially admitting that the deputy mayor took the bribe, unlike previous cases where he rejected accusations toward other mayors tainted with corruption allegations.
“I am glad you are shocked, Mr. Özgür. You will get used to it. You will be shocked more and more. You will be embarrassed,” Erdoğan said.
He also underlined that the state would not tolerate corruption and would ensure accountability. "The theft of every penny, every bribe taken, every public asset looted will be questioned in court. Our legal institutions have a duty to ensure this," Erdoğan continued.
He reaffirmed that the government would carry out its duties in line with the Constitution and laws.
Referring to the opposition's calls for early elections, Erdoğan reminded that the next presidential and parliamentary elections would be held in 2028, and local elections in 2029, as dictated by the Constitution and the Election Law.
"The opposition may wish for early elections, but it is not our agenda. The last election gave us 52.18% of the vote to rule for five years, and we will serve for that full term,” Erdoğan stated.
Erdoğan also accused the opposition of seeking foreign intervention in Türkiye’s internal affairs.
"They even stooped to asking Western countries and institutions why they are not intervening in Türkiye as they did before. They have betrayed their country by complaining to foreign media and political circles,” he said.
Özel traveled to Brussels to attend EU events where he sought to rally European lawmakers to support them against “political” arrests of mayors.
