a half-finished subway station on the outskirts of Istanbul, the construction machines are at a standstill for months, and dozens of workers waiting for you to finally be able to continue to work. The project was laid last year, first because of the currency crisis on ice. But since then, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s party in June, lost the mayor’s office to the opposition candidate Ekrem imamoğlu, the Problem seems to be less economic than political in nature.
the power struggle in Turkey
The politicians of the opposition Republican people’s party (CHP) accuses the government of, him the money to turn off the taps. State-owned banks would give for important projects no more loans, says imamoğlu. “We see that even to Finance our daily needs, no loans are granted.”
In the Emergency imamoğlu turned to foreign countries, and secured in November a loan from the German Bank in the amount of 110 million euros for the continuation of the metro project. Also from the French development Agency, the opposition politicians received during a trip to Berlin, London and Paris, a loan of 86 million euros to the construction of subway will continue.
imamoğlu had won the local election in March, narrowly, but gave Erdogan the vote to cancel. In the case of the repeat of the election in the end of June, the CHP politician, however, was won again. Since then, he engaged the government in a bitter dispute with the finances. While imamoğlu stops payments to foundations and companies that Erdogan’s ruling AKP party are close to, the government, the municipal government to honor the money-to-manage.
Want to make Erdogan his rivals cold?
The Analyst Anthony Skinner says, Erdogan wool to prevent imamoğlu use the mayoralty as a political springboard, as he himself had done as mayor in the 90s. Due to the refusal of loans, the state banks would want to slow down imamoğlu and his Team, says the expert of the risk assessment company Verisk Maplecroft.
Neither Ziraat Bank, Halkbank responded to requests from the news Agency AFP. The state-owned banks had many of the prestigious large-scale co-financed projects, the Erdogan since his accession to the throne in Istanbul realized, including a new airport for the 16-million metropolis, and a third bridge over the Bosphorus, and a Tunnel under the Strait, and several metro lines.
Since then, imamoğlu in the office, no longer wanted to help the banks, but complains of the CHP representative Tarik Balyali. “Some state banks do not want to remove the phone to talk to us, let alone lend,” says the spokesman of the city administration. This way, you would work as a public Institution rather state banks to cover the financial requirements.
Istanbul is a highly indebted
Like many other municipalities in Turkey, Istanbul, according to the years in the ACP-manage high levels of debt. Imamoğlu has taken over from his predecessor, debt of 28.8 billion Lira (€4.5 billion). Alone, interest payments will cost the city government each year to 1.5 billion Lira. For the completion of the metro projects, the city will need 19 billion Lira.
Imamoglus situation is complicated by the fact that the ACP in the city Council still has the majority. In addition, under important institutions in Istanbul are not of the municipality but of the government. This will now also take control of the districts along the Bosphorus. The CHP accuses her of wanting to the ability of the municipality to prune it.
However, this is for Erdogan to be a difficult balancing act, says Skinner. On the one hand, he wanted to prevent imamoğlu profiling successful projects, on the other hand, but also not as a brakeman will be perceived, of sabotaging the development of the city. Arctic outbreak brought to us in January, up to 2.50 meters of new snow PCP Arctic outbreak brought to us in January, up to 2.50 meters of new snow
csf/AFP
