Kızılay President Yılmaz's self-criticism regarding February 6: They had sold tents for money

In response to a student's question, "What do you think about the policy followed by Kızılay in the last earthquake? What are the things it did well and what did it do poorly?", Yılmaz replied:

"There is a Turkey Disaster Response Plan, determined by AFAD, which everyone is obliged to follow. In this plan, the responsibility given to Kızılay is the responsibility for nutrition. Kızılay is the main entity responsible for the nutrition sphere. But on the other hand, it is a 156-year-old institution. For 156 years, it has been a non-governmental organization whose genetic makeup and institutional infrastructure include functions such as setting up tents, providing shelter, providing health services, social assistance, and distributing everything from hygiene kits to clothing.

Now, there is of course a reason for this outrage on social media. Of course, there is a flaw there as well. But if you ask, 'What policy has the Turkish Red Crescent followed since the beginning of the earthquake and what does it continue to do?', the Turkish Red Crescent is Turkey's largest non-governmental organization that arrived on the field in the first 30 minutes on the first day of the earthquake and has not left that place yet, and continues to provide support," she stated.

COMPARED TURKEY TO PAKISTAN

Kızılay President Fatma Meriç Yılmaz compared Turkey to Pakistan, noting that 33 million people were affected by the flood disaster in Pakistan in 2022 and that only 1,000 houses could be built in the past 2 years.

Explaining that Kızılay delivered 50 thousand tents to AFAD within one day and that Turkey established container cities in a one-month period, Yılmaz said that Turkey is a country that has delivered 100 thousand houses so far.

Stating that they were not responsible for shelter but for nutrition in the earthquake, Yılmaz said, "Sometimes we can miss certain things while evaluating an event as a whole.

In other words, there will of course be shortcomings in such a huge disaster. There may also be mistakes, we are all human. What is our duty? If we made a mistake, we will accept it. We will take precautions so that that mistake is not made again," she said.

IT WAS REVEALED THAT THEY SOLD TENTS

It was revealed that Kızılay, which could not be found in the region after the earthquake that caused the deaths of tens of thousands of citizens, was busy selling its tent stocks while thousands of people were struggling for their lives under the rubble.

Accordingly, Kızılay sold 46 million TL worth of tents to AHBAP on the third day of the earthquake.