Division even in times of crisis: Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality not invited to Erdoğan's AFAD meeting
Following the 6.2 magnitude earthquake in Istanbul that occurred off the coast of Silivri, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held a crisis meeting at the AFAD headquarters. While party officials such as the AKP Promotion and Media Head attended the meeting, the fact that the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB), the local government of Istanbul, was not invited drew attention.
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Following the 6.2 magnitude earthquake that occurred in the Sea of Marmara off the coast of Silivri and was felt throughout Istanbul, AKP Chairman and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held a crisis assessment meeting at the AFAD headquarters.
The meeting was attended by Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change Murat Kurum, Minister of Youth and Sports Osman Aşkın Bak, Minister of Interior Ali Yerlikaya, Minister of Health Kemal Memişoğlu, Istanbul Governor Davut Gül, and senior bureaucrats from various public institutions.
However, one of the notable details was the presence of AKP Promotion and Media Head Faruk Acar among those at the meeting. Despite Acar's presence at the crisis meeting as a political official, the fact that representatives of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality were not invited to the meeting raised questions in the public eye.
It is stated that the İBB was not invited. The absence of the administrators of Turkey's largest metropolis from the crisis desk and the disconnect between central and local government on a vital issue such as an earthquake drew criticism.