Remarkable financial audit report from the Constitutional Court: Penalty for CHP!

The Constitutional Court has published the financial audit decisions for a total of 10 political parties, including the Republican People's Party (CHP), in the Official Gazette.

The audits cover the 2016 financial accounts of the CHP and the 2023 financial accounts of the other nine parties.

DECISION REGARDING CHP'S TRAFFIC FINES

In the Court's examination of the CHP's final accounts, it was ruled that a total of 21,285 Turkish Lira and 75 kuruş in expenses, which were found not to be in compliance with the law, should be removed from the party's assets and recorded as revenue for the Treasury. This amount stemmed from traffic fines paid by the party during 2016.

The decision emphasized that while it is possible to cover the ordinary expenses of vehicles used within the scope of political activities from the party budget, penalty expenses arising from personal negligence cannot be considered within the scope of political activities.

For this reason, it was stated that expenses arising from the failure to fulfill legal obligations, such as traffic fines, must be removed from the party's accounts.

The High Court determined that for the 2023 accounts of the Genç Türkiye Partisi, Halkın Sesi Partisi, Doğuş Partisi, Güzel Parti, Hak ve Adalet Partisi, Cumhuriyet ve Adalet Partisi, Saadet Partisi, Şahlanış Partisi, and Cumhuriyet Partisi, a proper audit could not be conducted due to the failure to establish an accountable record and documentation system.

Concluding that these deficiencies were intended to hinder examination and investigation, the Court unanimously decided to file a criminal complaint with the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office to initiate legal proceedings against the responsible party officials.