The ministry of finance cannot fully pay the salaries for March 2016. For this reason those who have a salary higher than four thousand Turkish lira (TL) will receive only 60% of their salary, Turkish Cypriot daily ‘Afrika’ reports.
Prime Minister, Omer Kalyoncu said yesterday that the rest of the salaries will be paid within a few days and added that those who receive a net salary of up to four thousand TL will be paid their full salary.
The newspaper claims that Turkey is furious because the economic protocol with the TRNC has not been signed yet and therefore is punishing the Turkish Cypriots by withholding payments.
Turkish Cypriot daily ‘Halkin Sesi’ newspaper recalls that because the economic protocol has not been signed yet, all kinds of transfer of financial resources from Turkey to the TRNC have ceased as of January. Noting that this is the first time in 33 years that the salaries in North Cyprus will be paid by installment, the paper writes that the ministry of finance is in a very difficult situation and that in the previous month, the salaries had been paid with difficulty. According to the paper, the projects financed by Turkey have not been launched in 2016 because the protocol has not been signed.
“Turkey, which is using the pretext of the non-signing of the protocol, did not send its 90 million TL contribution for the payment of the salaries in the TRNC”, notes the paper.
Turkish Cypriot daily ‘Havadis’ reports that the National Unity Party (UBP) – the minor coalition partner, is up in arms about the fact that the signing of the protocol has been delayed. It is considering the establishment of a government without the Republican Turkish Party (CTP). This government would sign the protocol, make reforms and afterwards carry out elections, it said.
Afrika, Halkin Sesi, Havadis
