Ministry of Interior has made its decision regarding Tunç Soyer! Will an investigation be opened for the Tarkan concert?

The Ministry of Interior has decided that there is no need to open an investigation into former Metropolitan Mayor Tunç Soyer regarding allegations concerning the expenditures for the Tarkan concert, which was organized by the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality on September 9, 2022, the 100th anniversary of the city's liberation.

The decision, which bears the signature of Minister of Interior Ali Yerlikaya, included the following statements:

"It has been determined that the expenditures for the Tarkan concert held on 09/09/2022 were made by İZFAŞ, a subsidiary of the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality; that a total of 11,745,423.79 TL in sponsorship revenue was obtained from 15 companies for this purpose; that 1,020,000.00 TL taken as collateral from the Staras company, which undertook the sound and stage work, was recorded as revenue due to the collapse of the stage during its construction; that consequently, 12,765,423.79 TL in off-budget revenue was generated for this activity; that in contrast, a payment of 3,540,000.00 TL including VAT was made to Tarkan; that in addition to this amount, a total of 14,256,051.74 TL was paid from the company budget for expenses such as sound, stage, accommodation, transportation, security, insurance, and portable toilets; on the other hand, it was noted that former İzmir Metropolitan Mayor Mustafa Tunç Soyer stated in an interview on Habertürk TV on 24/01/2023 that 'payment was made to Tarkan by sponsors for the concert held by the municipality on 09/09/2022, and that Tarkan donated this money to certain charities'; however, although 1,490,627.95 TL of the expenditures exceeded the sponsorship support and it was known that this amount was spent from the budget of İZFAŞ, a subsidiary of the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality, and there were no documents in the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality regarding the expenditures made by Tarkan to charities, it was evaluated that the Metropolitan Mayor made misleading statements when he should have expressed the truth to the public with clear sentences in such situations; on the other hand, it is understood that these untrue words do not constitute a crime or an element of a crime beyond being unethical, nor do they have a counterpart in the Turkish Penal Code No. 5237; therefore, it has been decided 'not to grant permission for an investigation' into former İzmir Metropolitan Mayor Mustafa Tunç Soyer, with the right to appeal to the First Chamber of the Council of State within 10 days from the date of notification, in accordance with the provisions of Article 6 of the Law No. 4483 on the Prosecution of Civil Servants and Other Public Officials."

WHAT HAD HAPPENED?

Prior to the Tarkan concert held at Alsancak Gündoğdu Square as part of the 100th Anniversary Events of the Liberation of İzmir, it was alleged that İzmir Metropolitan Mayor Mustafa Tunç Soyer "stated that Tarkan would not receive a fee for the concert, and subsequently claimed in an interview that 'not a penny will go into Tarkan's pocket, the money received will be transferred to charity,' despite the fact that the amount to be paid was not clearly stated, and that the expenditures and sponsorships made by the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality were questionable."