Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris
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REVUE DE PRESSE-PRESS REVIEW-BERHEVOKA ÇAPÊ-RwISTA STAMPA-DENTRO DE LA PRENSA-BASIN ÖZETi<br />
turkish daily news / September 8, 1993<br />
Kozakcloglu accused of embezzlement<br />
during tenure as Southeast regional governor<br />
134<br />
• Kozakçloglu <strong>de</strong>nies allegation,<br />
labels it slan<strong>de</strong>r<br />
• Current regional governor Erkan<br />
<strong>de</strong>clines comment, says claim is to<br />
be investigated by Interior Ministry<br />
Turkish Daily News<br />
ANKARA- The daily Sabah on Tuesday said that<br />
Istanbul Governor Hayri KozakçlO~lu is being accused<br />
of embezzling TL 2 billion while he was emergency-rule<br />
governor for the troubled southeastern<br />
proVInces ofTurkey. .<br />
In an Istanbul press conference, KozakçlOglu vehemently<br />
<strong>de</strong>.nie~ the allegation, labeling it "base slan<strong>de</strong>r,<br />
mere fabncatlOnthroilgh and throug~."<br />
With a banner that read "You, too, Mr. Governor?"<br />
Sabah broke the news of a belated discovery -- by two<br />
and a half years -- that TL 2 billion of the relief aid<br />
extén<strong>de</strong>d by the United Nations Development fund to<br />
the Kurds fleeing Saddain Hussein was missinf'<br />
The discovery was reportedly ma<strong>de</strong> by Üna Erkan,<br />
successor to Kozakçlogluas emergency-rule governor.<br />
Immediately afterwards, Erkan Informed the Interior<br />
Ministry of the missing amount. ..<br />
.The mimstry inquiry conducted after Erkan's notification<br />
led t? an am~zIn$ revelation .. Sabah said: That<br />
the money In question nad been WIthdrawn"from the<br />
regional governor's official account at Vaklfbankby<br />
Kozakçloglu and <strong>de</strong>posited into his private account in<br />
a bank in Istanbul.<br />
Fon:nally aske~ to come up with a satisfactory explanatIOn<br />
and facIng a <strong>de</strong>manô to pay the money back,<br />
KozakçlOglu, Sabah said, wrote to Interior Ministry.<br />
officials, maintaining that he had s~ent it all to me<strong>et</strong><br />
"press and other similar expenses. Whereupon, Sa-<br />
.bah reported, the interior minister of the time, Ism<strong>et</strong><br />
Sezgin,was told of the inci<strong>de</strong>nt.<br />
Sezgin is said to have advised those concerned to<br />
"work it all out b<strong>et</strong>ween yourselves," Sabah said<br />
quoting. a ministry official speaking on condition oi<br />
anonymlly. . -<br />
. ~ozakçlOglu is said to haverepaid the TL 2 billion<br />
In Installments. .<br />
Y<strong>et</strong> the m<strong>et</strong>hod of/ayment was somewhat curious<br />
too. KozakçlOglu ha reportedly withdrawn the mon~<br />
ey he nee<strong>de</strong>d torepay t)Je <strong>de</strong>bt from the Istanbul governor's<br />
funds.<br />
Asked by the Anatolia news agency to assess the<br />
.Sabah report, current EmerfencY-Rule Governor Ü nal<br />
Erk~n <strong>de</strong>clined comment." won't be dragged into polemIcs.<br />
Those who..read the article willthink it was me who<br />
gave the money. I didn't do any such thing. It's up to<br />
the Interior Ministry to investigate and <strong>de</strong>ci<strong>de</strong>" Erkan<br />
said. '<br />
In another <strong>de</strong>velopment, KozakçlOglu held a press<br />
conference at the Istanbul governor's office, where,<br />
fla.nked by <strong>de</strong>puty governors and Istanbul security<br />
chIef Nec<strong>de</strong>t MenZIr, he maintained that "nothing<br />
co~ld be further from the truth than the Sabah story." .<br />
No one has ever doubted the honesty and earnest<br />
wor~ ~f Hayri Koza,kçl?g lu. I've always been an honest<br />
CIVIlservant. This piece of news about me is thoroughly,<br />
absolutely false. Nothing could be further<br />
from the truth," Kozakç 109lu told reporters.<br />
Kozakçloglu corroborated that TL 1.9 billIon had<br />
been transferred. .<br />
"Y<strong>et</strong> the money was transferred not to a private account<br />
of mine but, on the contrary, to an account of<br />
the Istanbul governor's office. And this with the<br />
knowledge and consent of relevant authorities"<br />
KozakçlOglu ad<strong>de</strong>d. "This am.ount was Eoing to be<br />
used for various <strong>de</strong>velopment projects in Istanbul, but<br />
upon the <strong>de</strong>mand of the emergency-rule governorship<br />
dated Jan. l, 1993, the money, <strong>de</strong>posited in the Sirkeêi<br />
district Valafbank accourtt of the Istanbul governor,<br />
was sent back, tog<strong>et</strong>her with the accrued interest to<br />
the Diyarbakir account of the emergency-rule g~vernorship,"<br />
he explained. Kozakçloglu also related the<br />
contents of a conversation b<strong>et</strong>ween him and Erkan in<br />
which he, KozakçlOglu, <strong>de</strong>man<strong>de</strong>d to usé the TL 2 billion<br />
for Istanbul. .<br />
"When I was appointed Istanbulgovernor, there<br />
Was TL 35 billion In emergency-rule accounts apart<br />
from the allotted budg<strong>et</strong> money. Sol said I wanted to<br />
use that TL 2 bjllion for Istanbul. He refused. So I<br />
sent the money back. En masse, too, not by installments,"<br />
KozakçlO~lu said. .<br />
~~ ad<strong>de</strong>d thatlte would formally ask the Interior<br />
.MInIstry to appoint a speCial investigator to look into<br />
the case.<br />
The Sabah story coinci<strong>de</strong>s with wi<strong>de</strong>spread rumors<br />
that Erkan's hopes for appointment as Istanbul governor<br />
have recently been dashed.