Malatya is left orphaned once again... 12punto investigates: Why earthquake survivors do not want to move into TOKİ homes

Hikmet Eren ÇELENK-12punto.com.tr/ EXCLUSIVE

Following the earthquake that occurred on February 6, it was announced that comprehensive efforts were being carried out in the affected provinces. TOKİ frequently shared with the public that housing units in many provinces were ready for delivery. However, earthquake survivors did not move into the TOKİ homes. 

12punto asked CHP Malatya Provincial Chair Barış Yıldız and Yeşilyurt District Chair Hakkı Ayas why earthquake survivors do not want to move into TOKİ homes. 

“DUE TO INCOME DIFFICULTIES” 

CHP Malatya Provincial Chair Barış Yıldız stated in his explanation to 12punto, “There are no commercial areas in the TOKİ developments. There is no grocery store, no bakery, no health center, no school. The public has concerns about this. Some of the earthquake survivors have built a life for themselves outside the city and do not want to return. They do not want to move in because they know that the installments will begin as soon as they receive the keys from TOKİ; they are trying to postpone it. It is due to income difficulties,” he said. 

CHP Malatya Provincial Chair Barış Yıldız

“SOCIAL ASSISTANCE IS BEING CUT”

Stating that citizens who move into their homes will not be able to benefit from the aid provided while they were staying in containers, Barış Yıldız said, “There is a situation where AFAD applies cuts to social assistance for those who move from container cities to their homes. Infrastructure is being created with temporary solutions. For example, citizens cannot move into their homes at İkizce TOKİ. The Malatya Water and Sewerage Administration (MASKİ) remains insufficient in infrastructure investments.”

“DECISION-MAKING WAS DELAYED”

CHP Yeşilyurt District Chair Hakkı Ayas, regarding the reasons why earthquake survivors in Yeşilyurt, one of the central districts of the earthquake, are not moving into their homes, stated, “There are some problems regarding the on-site transformations here. It has not yet been decided what will be done. The government delayed the decision-making process too much. Planning and programming were not done; it was too late for urbanization in Malatya. Many people are staying in container cities. Container cities are not a solution either. Their infrastructure problems are very severe due to the heat,” he explained. 

CHP Yeşilyurt District Chair Hakkı Ayas

“INFRASTRUCTURE PROBLEMS ARE NOT BEING RESOLVED”

Touching on the importance of infrastructure systems in earthquake survivors not moving into their homes, Ayas said, “There was no infrastructure work before, but it is just now beginning. Planning has only just taken place. Construction of some has just started. Infrastructure in İkizce has partially started to be used, but it cannot be said that the infrastructure problem has been fully solved.”

“MALATYA EXPERIENCED A LARGE POPULATION LOSS”

Speaking about Malatya's outward migration, Hakkı Ayas said the following: 

“The government was very late for Malatya. Malatya has seen a lot of outward migration. There is a migration of nearly 200,000. How can those who want to return do so? There is still a major housing shortage. Rents are around 14-15 thousand liras. We talk to many of our citizens who have migrated, and they ask us how they will return. Especially business people and many people in the group we can call auxiliary staff have left. They have nothing left to hold onto here. There is no work; there are container shopkeepers, but those we speak with say they cannot do business.” 

“ANKARA IMPOSED SOLUTIONS FROM BEHIND A DESK”

Saying that the citizens are intertwined with a great deal of misinformation, Hakkı Ayas said, “We are continuing on our way with confusion and ignorance. None of us are aware of the planning. All NGOs in Malatya and the public should have been involved to find a solution, but Ankara imposed its solutions from behind a desk. This is as far as it goes with desk-based planning and impositions. They do things without consulting the public, and then when the public objects, they ask why they objected. To prevent objections, civil society must be involved. Malatya's biggest problem is misinformation. No one in this region knows what will happen. Even I don't know what to do right now. Should I submit a petition? How will that place be? We go to the authorities, they give half-information and send us back. We said, 'Let Consultation Centers be established' for this problem. Let the public come and ask what they are curious about. We wanted us all to be aware of how the process will work. We wanted to prevent misinformation,” he said.

“EVERYONE OWES EVERYONE”

Speaking about the economic difficulties of the public, President Ayas listed his solution proposals as follows: 

“The entire public is in rebellion. Every day, fifty people come and ask us how they will pay their debts. The tradesmen have risen up. During the previous governor's term, a promise was made to the 'Barracks Region' tradesmen that they would stay in their places until they got through the winter. After this promise, the tradesmen made purchases and stocked up. Now they are being removed from their places. Since the earthquake, no one can make payments to anyone, nor can they continue their trade. Citizens cannot pay their debts to both the state and individuals. A minister came and made a statement saying, 'We were late in Malatya.' Our new governor turned out to be a bit fast and wanted to start demolitions immediately. This time, the grievance of the tradesmen emerged. The tradesmen were removed from their shops and sent to container cities. This time, deficiencies began to appear in the containers. The containers are very far from the center. Some have no electricity, those with electricity have no water, and those with water have no sink. During the previous governor's term, we were not even invited to earthquake coordination meetings. Politics disappears in an earthquake; there is no you or me, we all need to fix things together. And we were not invited to these meetings; there was discrimination.”

“DEAD CITY MALATYA”

In his statement regarding the social life of people in Malatya, Hakkı Ayas said, “Life has stopped in Malatya. Just look into people's eyes. There is no hope, no life. There is uncertainty. Everyone is trying to save the day,” expressing that Malatya has turned into a dead city.

News Source: Hikmet Eren Çelenk