Municipal palace from AKP mayor: 1 billion TL project sparks controversy!

AKP Pendik Mayor Ahmet Cin's new municipal building project has a cost of 1 billion TL! The construction process, which has been ongoing since 2021, has proceeded through three separate tenders. CHP municipal council member Onur Uğur stated that the project's cost increasing tenfold is a waste of public resources. While emphasizing that more beneficial investments could have been made for retirees and students, Uğur expressed that this situation reflects a disconnect from the public and a lack of transparency. The building, which is planned to be completed in 2025, has sparked controversy.

TO BE COMPLETED IN 2025

As reported by İsmail Arı from BirGün, Pendik Municipal Council's CHP member, lawyer Onur Uğur, reacted to the 1 billion TL spent on the municipal building, stating: “The construction process and costs of the new municipal building are a complete scandal. The project, which was first tendered in 2021 for 136 million 250 thousand TL as a 'turnkey lump-sum' contract, was terminated after the contractor firm could not complete the work. Subsequently, the same project was given to the municipality's own subsidiary, Penyapsan, for 289 million TL. However, as if that were not enough, the year 2025 was targeted for the completion of the building in the Performance Program, and it was stated that the total cost is 1 billion TL.”

WASTEFUL MUNICIPALISM

Noting that “This cost increase and the constant postponement of the project are a clear indicator of how public resources are being wasted,” Uğur said: “There is no trace of transparency or accountability in this project, which is financed by citizens' taxes. The fact that costs have increased nearly tenfold reveals serious weaknesses in the municipality's financial management. Building what is essentially a palace for a district like Pendik, which has a low socio-economic level and a high population, is a clear and obvious example of wasteful municipalism.”

Stating that spending this mega-budget on a building when very beneficial investments could have been made for retirees and students is the greatest indicator of a disconnect from the public, Uğur said: “Actually, we clearly saw this disconnect from the public during the last local election campaigns as well. They couldn't even go down to the markets in Pendik; they avoided coming together with the public. Therefore, we are against this so-called 'there is no saving from prestige' approach.”