A reminder of the past for Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu: 'Which is a bribe, which is a donation?'

The recent statements made by Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who was brought to the position of Chairman following the "absolute nullity" ruling by the court in the CHP, continue to maintain their place on the political agenda. Following Kılıçdaroğlu's criticism of requesting money from mayors, stating, "The moment you ask a mayor for money, it means telling that mayor to 'go take a bribe'," journalist Deniz Zeyrek penned a noteworthy column.

He reminded of the 40 million lira allegation from 2021

Nefes columnist Deniz Zeyrek recalled a news report published on the front page of the Sabah newspaper on June 24, 2021. In that report, it was alleged that 40 million lira had been collected from party-affiliated municipalities for the purpose of establishing a television channel close to the CHP, but that the fate of this money had become uncertain.

In his article, Zeyrek also drew attention to the details on the inner pages of the Sabah newspaper, stating that allegations were reported claiming the money was collected by Erdoğan Toprak, who is noted for supporting Kılıçdaroğlu even today.

Stating that the same report mentioned that the mayors of Maltepe and Bakırköy confirmed that money had been collected from them, Zeyrek noted that Erdoğan Toprak had dismissed these allegations as "slander by mayors who were not nominated for candidacy."

Allegation that he "personally took interest in the TV project"

In his article, Deniz Zeyrek stated that some witnesses from that period had sent him messages and that he had spoken directly with some individuals, claiming that these people alleged that large sums of money were collected from mayors.

Based on the accounts of the witnesses, Zeyrek wrote that it was alleged that Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu was directly involved in the project to establish a television station.

In his column, Zeyrek included the following remarks: "Kılıçdaroğlu personally took an interest in the business of establishing the TV station. He even followed the developments at RTÜK. The TV project ended in a fiasco, and the fate of the collected money is still a matter of debate," arguing that there is a contradiction between Kılıçdaroğlu's recent statements and what happened in the past based on these allegations.

Deniz Zeyrek also brought up another allegation regarding the Kılıçdaroğlu era in his article.

Accordingly, it was claimed that money was also collected from mayors to finance the CHP İstanbul Provincial Headquarters building.

As a basis for this allegation, the speeches made by former CHP İstanbul Provincial Chairman Cemal Canpolat at provincial congresses were cited.

Zeyrek quoted the following statements from Canpolat's speeches:

"They say, 'Where is the money from the night held with 10 thousand dollar tickets?' We printed and distributed tickets for 10 million lira at that time. These mayors did not pay 8.5 million of it. One of them was dear Mayor Ekrem. He has a debt of 1.5 million. He is one of those who did not pay for that ticket. We have other mayors too. Slander and let it stick."

He concluded his article with questions

At the end of his column, referring to Kılıçdaroğlu's recent statements, Deniz Zeyrek used the phrases, "Well... Wasn't asking for money from mayors the same as saying 'go ask for a bribe'?"

In his assessment, Zeyrek argued that the practices Kılıçdaroğlu criticizes today had also come to the agenda in the past, stating, "The situation is clear: Kılıçdaroğlu also frequently engaged in the act he now describes as 'taking a bribe' in the past. Let's see what other testimonies will come forward."

News Source: 12punto