Turkish parliament to probe into massive quake disaster

ANKARA

The Turkish parliament has established a commission to delve into the devastating earthquakes that killed more than 45,000 people in Türkiye’s 11 provinces.

Five political parties being represented at the parliament endorsed the establishment of the commission that will study the reasons for the disaster and the response given to it by the state institutions. The 21-member commission will have three days to complete its work and submit its report to the parliament.

Eleven provinces in the country’s southeastern Anatolian region were heavily hit by two major earthquakes of magnitude 7.7 and 7.6, respectively, on Feb. 6. There were criticisms against the relevant emergency and disaster management agencies for delays and shortcomings in rushing to the help of the people.

“This must be well known. Around 20,000 houses collapsed and the world’s one of the most devastating earthquakes took place, with a magnitude of 7.7. The easiest thing is to criticize but one expects appreciation over what has been done in the field [to mitigate the problems],” Kahmaranmaraş Deputy of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) said during the talks late on March 2.

Republican People’s Party (CHP) Adana Deputy Müzeyyen Şevkin recalled that she was at home in Adana when the earthquakes hit the region, saying, “When we were there next to the rubbles and we saw the people mourning, we have not only seen the collapsed buildings but the collapsed state.”

“If we don’t face this reality, we can never take real measures,” she said, recalling that the opposition’s motions for the establishment of a commission about the measures against potential earthquakes were all rejected by the ruling party in the past.