Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan attends joint press conference after talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Russia, on March 5, 2020. Pavel Golovkin / Pool via REUTERS / File Photo
President Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday appointed a prominent member of Turkey’s AK party, Mehmet Mus, as Minister of Commerce and split another ministry in two, in what officials said was the first step in a mix. planned cabinet.
In a presidential decree, Ruhsar Pekcan, the highest-profile woman in the cabinet, was replaced as trade minister by Mus, who is close to Erdogan’s former finance minister and son-in-law, Berat Albayrak, a party figure. divider. Read more
The decree, published in the Official Gazette, gave no reason for the change, but comes after opposition politicians accused Pekcan’s ministry of buying supplies from his family business and demanded his resignation.
The Ministry of Commerce confirmed that a purchase of health products had been made, but said in a statement on Tuesday that the choice was based only on price and not on the “name of the company making the sale”.
He said the sale, worth about £ 500,000 ($ 62,000), had been carried out in accordance with the relevant regulations.
Erdogan’s overnight changes come amid speculation over a broader cabinet reshuffle, after the country’s top economic management, including the central bank governor, changed in November.
A senior government official told Reuters that further changes are expected in four or five ministries after the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which will end in mid-May.
“There was generally an expectation of cabinet reshuffle and this is still valid. But the Pekcan disinfection incident was not acceptable,” the official said, adding that Erdogan will make the final decision on any other changes.
ALBAYRAK ALLIES
Mus, a member of the AK party since 2011, who was vice president responsible for the economy, was one of the first to defend Albayrak’s record and asked him to continue in office when Albayrak abruptly resigned as minister. of Finance in November.
The rapid turnover of the past two months in powerful state and financial institutions has left other Albayrak allies in the forefront, including Salim Arda Ermut, the new CEO of Turkey Wealth Fund.
Foreign investors withdrew from Turkey due to unorthodox policies under Albayrak surveillance, including the sale of some $ 128 billion in foreign currency through state-owned banks in 2019 and 2020 that severely depleted the country’s reserves. central bank. Read more
“Mus was close to Albayrak,” said a person close to the AK party who also requested anonymity.
“The expectation of cabinet reshuffle did not end this move. The president is ordering the timing,” the person added.
According to the decree, Erdogan also established two new ministries by dividing the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Policies into two separate ministries.
He appointed Derya Yanik as Minister of Family and Social Policies and Vedat Bilgin as Minister of Labor and Social Security, replacing Zehra Zumrut Selcuk.
($ 1 = $ 8,1122)
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