AKP's Özlem Zengin on the date for pension hikes: 'When conditions are favorable...'

The main opposition party strongly opposed the proposal to increase the lowest pension, which is 16,881 TL, to 20,000 TL with an 18.40 percent raise. They stated that this amount is insufficient and that it should be raised to at least the level of the minimum wage.

However, the ruling party closed the doors to the possibility of an 'update'.

AKP Chairman and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan most recently stated the following:

"The General Assembly deliberations for our legislative proposal, which increases the lowest pension to 20,000 liras, have begun. With your close follow-up, I believe our proposal will be enacted as soon as possible. With the entry into force of the proposal, it will have increased to 20,000 liras with an increase of 3,319 liras.

This figure was only 66 liras when we took office. It corresponded to 40 dollars. In November 2002, the minimum wage was 184 liras. Today, the lowest pension has exceeded 70 percent of the minimum wage."

Stating, "We have never turned a deaf ear to the demands and complaints of our retirees. On the contrary, one of our ears has always been with our retirees," Erdoğan explained that purchasing power will increase as inflation falls.

'WE HAVE THE DOCUMENT IN HAND'

The issue was also debated in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) General Assembly.

CHP Group Deputy Chair Murat Emir criticized Erdoğan for mentioning a figure that was in effect 23 years ago, emphasizing that the information provided was incomplete:

"Look, I have the document from the Presidency of Strategy and Budget in my hand, you can also access it on the internet right now. When you look at the figures here, yes, indeed, the salary of the lowest BAĞ-KUR retiree at that time was 150 liras, the salary of the lowest SSK retiree was 257 liras, the salary of the lowest civil servant retiree was 376 liras, and the minimum wage was 184 liras; that is, all of them were higher than the minimum wage, the BAĞ-KUR retiree was slightly behind.

So, where does this 66 liras come from? Actually, the real figure is 65.8 liras, which is the salary of the BAĞ-KUR agricultural retiree; what is described among the public as 'peasant retirement'.

The state once told producers, farmers, and our peasant citizens: 'Look, if you have sold a corn cob, if you have sold cotton, if you have an invoice in your hand, if you have a cob, bring it, pay a small amount of premium retroactively - because many salaries are incomplete - let us tie you a monthly salary, even if it is small, based on that.

Do you know what the figure was that day? Write it down now - they will send it to you in a moment - 9,000 people, and it was realized that this was not a viable job and it was abandoned; it has not existed for years, so this was not appropriate, this was not appropriate."

'THIS PARLIAMENT WILL MAKE A LAW TO GIVE 35 TL A DAY'

Subsequently stating, "This Parliament will make a law to give a retiree 35 liras a day, we do not accept this," Emir made a call to the AKP and MHP benches:

"We are proposing a fair system that will both raise the lowest pension to the level of the minimum wage and protect the rights of those who have paid premiums for 9,000 days, have earned it, and should receive a higher pension.

Our proposal is on the records, but if you say: 'Yours will not happen, let ours happen.' We are here, take out an A4 paper, write a fair raise, and we will sign it, pass it in five minutes, and give the good news."

DEFENDED ERDOĞAN'S EXAMPLE

AKP Group Deputy Chair Özlem Zengin stated that the salaries to be completed to 20,000 TL currently consist of three main categories and spoke as follows:

"One of these is those who retired with agricultural insurance, another is those who are voluntary, and we are talking about 4.5 million of our people, who make up the majority of the lowest BAĞ-KUR retirees. This is what we are doing today. That is why this 66 lira figure given by our President is a correct figure because the majority consists of them."

'YES, IT IS NOT ENOUGH, WE ALL SEE IT'

Continuing, Zengin admitted that the lowest pension is not enough and stated that it would be reviewed again 'when Turkey's conditions are most favorable':

"Thank you. We aim to provide the maximum possible contribution to our retirees without disrupting macroeconomic balances and - as it was in Mr. President's speech today - to make an arrangement by increasing these figures even more as soon as possible.

Yes, it is not enough; we all see this, and our President says so too, but when you look at the increase over time, we also see how serious an increase there has been in the process.

'WHEN CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE...'

My statement to our retiree brothers and sisters here is this, I am saying it to them as interlocutors: As soon as possible, when Turkey's conditions are most favorable, these wages will be reviewed again, once more."