CHP seeks to censure Suat Kılıç

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News

Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) submitted yesterday a censure motion against Youth and Sports Minister Suat Kılıç, for his alleged influence in securing the purchase of historical real estate in Ankara for a fraction of its value.

The motion said that a restoration project hit many owners, who were unaware that the municipality would finance the renovation and thus rushed to sell their properties well below the market value. One house and a plot of land were purchased by Kılıç, allegedly in collusion with municipality officials. The property he purchased for 25,000 TL is now said to be worth 300,000 TL.

“I don’t think it is ethically problematic for a lawmaker to purchase real estate,” Kılıç said yesterday. “The purchase was in 2009, before I was a minister.”