Floods and fires in Turkey: Erdoğan launches fundraising campaign

* Photo: Anadolu Agency (AA)

Click to read the article in Turkish

Foreseeing the launch of an aid campaign for the citizens negatively affected by the forest fires and floods, the Presidential decision of ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was published in the Official Gazette today (August 13).

According to the decision, a humanitarian aid campaign will be launched in order to contribute to the efforts to improve the conditions that negatively impact the general life. The decision will apply to both the recent fires and floods as well as the ones that will occur in the future.

Affiliated with the Ministry of Interior, the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) has been assigned with coordination within the scope of this decision. Accordingly, the numbers of bank accounts to be opened at public and/or private banks to transfer the money collected by governor's offices, municipalities and other public institutions and organizations or to be directly used by natural and legal persons for donation within this context will be announced by the AFAD.

Social media users criticize: #iban

On the other side, several social media users, including opposition politicians, have criticized the move on social media under the hashtag #iban*, referring back to a fundraising campaign unveiled by Erdoğan in the face of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

Some of these messages are as follows:

Yine, yeniden IBAN.. yangın ve sel felaketinden etkilenenler için yardım kampanyası yapacaklarmış. Halkın kanını emdiniz kanını. Yeter be #ıban pic.twitter.com/nYCNiyomSk

— MÜCAHİT SARI (@mucahitsariniz) August 12, 2021

"Once again, IBAN... They will launch an aid campaign for the ones affected by fire and flood disasters. You have sucked people dry. Enough."

Salgın, sel, deprem, yangın fark etmiyor. İktidar en yetkili ağızdan #helpTurkey diyor.

Cihan devleti olacakken #iban devleti olduk. Felaketlerden bile neredeyse rant çıkaracaklar. pic.twitter.com/4j9fVYAZgh

— Veli AĞBABA (@veliagbaba) August 13, 2021

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Vice Chair - CHP Malatya MP Veli Ağbaba: "No matter lf it is an outbreak, flood, earthquake, fire... The government says 'Help Turkey' from the mouth of the highest official. We have become an iban country while we were poised to become a world-wide country. They will almost obtain unearned income from disasters."

deprem olur #iban yangın olur #iban sel olur #iban

sarayda oturup somaliye 30 milyon DOLAR yardım yapabiliyorsun da,

vergilerini topladığın halkına gelince neden yardım etmiyorsun?

— MissSarıKartaL (@SariKartaL_06_) August 13, 2021

"There is an earthquake; iban... There is a fire; iban... There is a flood; iban... You can live in a palace and donate 30 million dollars to Somalia, but why cannot held your people from who you collect taxes?"

Sel ve yangın durumunda devlet yardım kampanyası düzenliyorsa…….. Devamına gelecek sayısız önerme var. pic.twitter.com/c5qAZ1k6fW

— Rengin Arslan (@RenginArslan) August 13, 2021

Journalist Rengin Arslan: "If the state launches an aid campaign in the event of flood and fire... There are innumerous propositions to come after." (AÖ/SD)

* IBAN stands for International Bank Account Number, which one can use when making or receiving international payments.