İYİ Party leader slams government over price hikes

ANKARA

The economic model proposed by the government has collapsed and started to increase the burden on people, the İYİ (Good) Party leader has said, criticizing the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) for failing to tackle the price hikes, especially on food.

“The Economy Model of Turkey has collapsed. The theory suggesting that [high] interest rate is the cause of [high] inflation has been defeated in the face of the realities of Turkey,” Meral Akşener told her lawmakers at a weekly meeting on April 6.

Akşener referred to a new economic model being implemented by the government since late 2021 that stipulates lowering the interest rates in a bid to keep inflation under control. The oppositional leader recalled that the official figure registered more than 60 percent inflation rate, stressing this alone is evidence of the collapse of the model.

“This figure shows the highest inflation rate of the past 20 years. No one can stop the price hikes,” she said, particularly pointing out at the food prices.

People are suffering because of the high prices, and poor families even have difficulty feeding their kids, Akşener stated, drawing attention to the state of the young people as the majority of them are seeking to leave the country and live abroad.