Turkish regime manipulation to state budget exposed

Nahla Abdel-Monem

Turkish newspaper Cumhuriyet exposed a scheme by the Ministry of Youths and government officials to transfer money secretly to non-profit foundations linked to the regime and RecebTayyib Erdogan.

The newspaper affirmed that an amendment to the budget of the ministry allowed money to be transferred to foundations that were described as “taxes-exempted foundations”.

The value of these funds has reached hundreds of millions of lira. The newspaper caims that the budget of the ministry has already increased five times since 2017 to reach 203 million and 786 thousand Liras for the budget of 2019 under «non-profit institutions», after it was during the past years only 46 million Liras.

The funds transferred to religious foundations such as Ensar, TÜRGEV, TÜGVA and İlimYaymawas kept secret by the ministry.

CHP Deputy Chairman Responsible for Education Policies Yildirim Kaya told the newspaper that the Parliament did not receive a definite answer form the government regarding these money transfers. He also stressed that this money should be injected to develop education not terrorism.

Sameh El Garhy, a professor of politics at the Faculty of Economics and Political Science at Cairo University, said to The Reference that the Turkish regime and its president, RecepTayyip Erdogan, are granting money and privileges to those who are close to the regime, regardless of the interests or the greater good of the state.

By reading the recent amendments to increase the funds allocated to charities, some may suggest that Turkey is interested in civil society institutions and activities within the state.

The truth, however, is very much unlike that, as In December 2018, the Open Society Foundation threatened to end all of its work in the country after Turkish authorities arrested 14 young people working for the Anatolia Cultural Foundation.

In February 2019, some civil organizations, including Reporters Without Borders, issued a joint statement calling on the Turkish regime to stop violence and confiscation against civil society institutions and their workers.