Public funds used for restoration of AKP official's mansion: 15 million TL spent

A fire that broke out in 2018 in Antalya's Balbey neighborhood affected historic structures, including a mansion owned by AKP Provincial Executive Zihni Kilit. However, an interesting situation emerged after the fire. It is alleged that in 2019, Zihni Kilit signed an 18-year lease agreement for the mansion with the Antalya Metropolitan Municipality.

According to this agreement, the municipality undertook the restoration of the mansion. The 15 million TL cost spent on the restoration was covered by public funds.

FUND USED FOR THE REPAIR OF HISTORIC STRUCTURES

10 percent of the property taxes collected by municipalities in Turkey are accumulated under the name of the Contribution Share for the Protection of Immovable Cultural Assets to repair mosques, inns, and other historic structures. However, the restoration of the Kilit Mansion in Antalya was carried out using this fund.

SCANDALS IN THE RESTORATION: 3 MILLION TL SAVED

According to a report by Yusuf Yavuz from Evrensel Newspaper, some scandals emerged during the restoration process of the Kilit Mansion. Within the scope of the project, a hydraulic lime-based injection application, which was carried out without board approval, was reported as 108 tons by the contractor firm requesting payment. However, examinations conducted by the Antalya Governorship and Istanbul Technical University determined that the application was both contrary to the project and technically impossible. For this reason, a payment of approximately 3 million TL was not made.

FROM 7.3 MILLION TL TO 14.8 MILLION TL

The restoration project, which started with an initial budget of 7.3 million TL, nearly doubled to 14.8 million TL over time due to increasing labor costs and project delays. This cost was covered directly from the cultural assets fund. In other words, the share deducted from the property tax paid by every taxpayer in Antalya was spent on the restoration of this mansion.

“PAID FROM THE CULTURE FUND”

CHP Antalya Deputy Cavit Arı stated that the payment was not made from the municipality's budget, but from the culture fund transferred by the Antalya Governorship, saying, "This should not be considered the municipality's money." 

News Source: 12punto