Trustee appointments are taking over local governments! What has happened in the last 8 years?

During the state of emergency (OHAL) declared after the July 15 coup attempt, significant changes were made to local governments through Decree-Law No. 674. This decree introduced the appointment of "trustees" to mayoral offices.

With amendments made to Articles 45, 57, and provisional Article 9 of the Municipal Law, the Minister of Interior is authorized to appoint a mayor, deputy mayor, or council member in metropolitan and provincial municipalities, while governors are authorized to do so in other municipalities. While no criteria other than having the right to vote are required for the appointee, municipal bodies or members under investigation or prosecution for crimes related to their duties can be suspended by the Ministry of Interior until a final verdict is reached. A replacement can also be appointed within 15 days for a mayor suspended due to an investigation or prosecution. In municipalities where trustees are appointed, "budget and accounting operations" are carried out by the tax office or property directorate with the approval of the governor's office.

The autonomy of local administrations was guaranteed under Article 127 of the Constitution.

While the autonomy of local administrations was guaranteed in Article 127 of the Constitution, the trustee practice leads to local administrations falling under the control of the central administration.

Before the changes made by Decree-Law No. 674, according to Article 45 of the Municipal Law No. 5393, in cases where the mayoral office became vacant, or the mayor was suspended, arrested, or banned from public service for a period exceeding the election term, a new mayor was determined by the municipal council, which was convened by the Governor within 10 days, from among the council members. However, with Decree-Law No. 674, the municipal council was bypassed, and the Ministry of Interior and the Governor's Office were authorized to appoint the mayor, member, and deputy mayor.

96 TRUSTEES APPOINTED TO MUNICIPALITIES IN 2016

According to a report prepared by the Lawyers for Freedom Association, as a result of the trustee practices paved by the OHAL Decree-Law No. 674, 96 out of 102 co-mayors elected from the Democratic Regions Party (DBP) in 2016 were removed from office and replaced by trustees. 67 of the co-mayors for whom trustees were appointed were arrested.

59 TRUSTEES APPOINTED IN 2019

The trustee practice continued after the 2019 elections. During the trustee process that began on August 19, 2019, certificates of election were not issued to 6 co-mayors and 56 municipal council members out of 65 HDP municipalities. Trustees were re-appointed to 59 of the 65 municipalities won by the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). Additionally, many municipal council members were arrested during this period.

AT LEAST 9,237 CIVIL SERVANTS DISMISSED

On the other hand, the report titled "Trustee Will Usurpation and Urban Destruction" prepared by the TMMOB Trustee Practices and Monitoring Commission noted that many properties were sold during the trustee period and resources were transferred by awarding many tenders to cronies through invitation-only procedures. It was recorded that as a result of the trustee appointments made in 2016 and 2019, 8,334 permanent and service-procured personnel and 923 civil servants were dismissed from municipalities, bringing the total number of dismissals to 9,237.

2024 elections: In Van, the mayoral office was taken from DEM and given to the AKP; after the backlash, Zeydan received his certificate of election.

The HDP, which entered the March 31, 2024 elections as the DEM Party, including the 65 municipalities where trustees were appointed in 2019, increased its number of municipalities to 78. The DEM Party won the metropolitan municipalities of Diyarbakır, Van, and Mardin, as well as 7 provinces, 58 districts, and 10 towns.

It emerged that the Ministry of Justice had applied for the revocation of the restored civil rights of Abdullah Zeydan, the Metropolitan Mayoral Candidate who received 55 percent of the votes of the voters in Van. Upon an objection filed 5 minutes before the end of business hours on March 29, two days before the March 31 elections, Zeydan's civil rights, including the right to vote and be elected, were revoked. Thereupon, the AK Party applied to the Van Provincial Election Board and requested that the certificate of election be given to their own candidate, Abdulahat Arvas, who received 27 percent of the votes. The Van Provincial Election Board accepted the request and gave the certificate to Arvas. These developments were evaluated by the Van public as an indirect appointment of a trustee to the municipality. Abdullah Zeydan received his certificate of election on April 5 after the objection filed with the Supreme Election Council (YSK) was accepted following the backlash.

TRUSTEE TO HAKKARİ MUNICIPALITY

Hakkari Municipality Co-Mayor Mehmet Sıddık Akış, who went to Diyarbakır for the GAP Municipalities Union election, was detained during a house raid conducted at 06:30 on June 3, 2024, while he was at his daughter's house in Van to spend the night on his way back. After the application made by his lawyers to the Hakkari Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, it was informed that he was detained within the scope of a 2024-based investigation initiated by the Hakkari Chief Public Prosecutor's Office only against the Co-Mayor and that there was a confidentiality order on the file. Upon this, Akış was removed from office and the Hakkari Governor Ali Çelik was appointed as a trustee by the Ministry of Interior in his place. On June 5, Hakkari Municipality Co-Mayor Mehmet Sıddık Akış was sentenced to 19 years and 6 months in prison in the case he was being tried. Following the verdict, Akış was arrested.

TRUSTEE TO ESENYURT MUNICIPALITY

Ahmet Özer, who was elected as the Esenyurt Mayor from the Republican People's Party (CHP) in the local elections in March 2024, was detained at his home in the morning hours of Wednesday, October 30. The Ministry of Interior announced that Esenyurt Mayor Ahmet Özer, who was arrested on October 31 for "being a member of the PKK/KCK armed terrorist organization," had been suspended from office. The Ministry announced that Istanbul Deputy Governor Can Aksoy had been appointed as the Esenyurt Deputy Mayor in place of Özer.

3 TRUSTEES IN ONE DAY

The Ministry of Interior removed Mardin Metropolitan Mayor Ahmet Türk, Batman Mayor Gülistan Sönük, and Halfeti Mayor Mehmet Karayılan, who were under DEM Party administration, from office today. Mardin Governor Tuncay Akkoyun was appointed as a trustee to the Mardin Metropolitan Municipality, Batman Governor Ekrem Canalp to the Batman Municipality, and Halfeti District Governor Hakan Başoğlu to the Halfeti Municipality.

Thus, trustees have been appointed to the Batman and Mardin municipalities for the third time. The reason given for the removal of Mardin Metropolitan Mayor Ahmet Türk was his 10-year prison sentence in the Kobani case. The ongoing case and investigations against Türk were also presented as reasons.

In addition, DEM Party Group Deputy Chairperson Gülistan Kılıç Koçyiğit announced that trustees have been appointed to 149 of their municipalities to date.