The General Secretary of the Communal Democracy Party (TDP) Nevzat Özkunt, has added his voice to critics of the new presidential complex to be constructed, Kibris Postasi reports.
Nevzat Özkunt said that the Turkish Cypriots had never asked for such a building and would prefer that the money was spent on the more pressing needs of the country that was in an economic recession.
When announcing his intention to fund the new palace complex last July, Turkish President Erdoğan said, “As you know, the TRNC Presidency has neither a proper presidential complex … nor a parliament building. We don’t think this suits the TRNC“. He described the existing presidential building as “a slum belonging to the British“.
The General Secretary of the TDP said that complex, which is being funded by Turkey at a cost of 586 million Turkish Lira, was not requested by the Turkish Cypriot people. “Investing in the complex is an example of great irresponsibility and disrespect to the public“, he said.
Meanwhile, there is no spending on the more urgent needs of the health and education sectors and no support for low-income workers and tradespeople, he said.
“The investment in the complex is a great example of irresponsibility and disrespect to the people, and the people of Turkey. It is also wrong to squander this money”, Özkunt said.
The TDP General Secretary said that the investment in the complex is an attack on the secular state structure. He noted that his party frequently had stated that an ostentatious palace is not an indicator of the state’s prestige. Their unwavering commitment to democracy and the social state of law was, Özkunt said.
Warning that they will take action, Özkunt said, “Now is the time for action. An action plan will become clear in a few days. If we as a society do not participate in this action with thousands of people, and if we do not stand up for our will as a society by saying ‘no to the complex’, our social existence will suffer another serious wound. This investment is a cornerstone of the process of social extinction. This needs to be thoroughly understood”, he said.
