Main opposition CHP criticizes health minister over ‘wrong optimism’

ANKARA

Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) spokesperson Faik Öztrak has criticized Health Minister Fahrettin Koca for what he said was “wrongly” painting an optimist outlook on the COVID-19 outbreak, eventually causing a rise in the daily confirmed cases in the country, as it began reopening much of the economy.

“Who led the nation into optimism by saying the pandemic is under control? How can you forget these words and blame citizens?” he said.

He criticized the government for not respecting the views of the Health Ministry’s Coronavirus Science Board.

Öztrak warned that a second COVID-19 wave will “twice shrink the Turkish economy.”

The CHP spokesperson also blamed the government for failing to “properly deliver face masks” to citizens across the country, as it had pledged face masks would be distributed for free in the early days of the pandemic.

“Families in need of money were given only 1,000 Turkish Liras to compensate for the three-month stay-at-home period,” he stated.

Turkish citizens are financially suffering, while other countries are providing financial support to their people, he stated. Öztrak said the Turkish government instead asked for financial aid from it is nationals in a donation campaign.

The CHP spokesperson also condemned a social media post directed at Başak Demirtaş, the wife of the jailed former co-chair of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), Selahattin Demirtaş, that contained sexual harrasment threats.

“The person behind this crime should be punished in the severest way,” he stated.