Evren Demirdaş, a correspondent for the daily Sözcü in Elazığ, has faced threats after reporting on a major public contract awarded to a company.
Ziver İnşaat, a construction company, reportedly secured approximately 10 billion liras in government contracts over the past 12 years (1 US dollar = 33.75 Turkish liras).
The most recent contract, worth 460 million liras, was granted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
Following the publication of a report concerning this contract, Veysel Demirci, chair of Ziver Holding, launched a personal attack against the journalist.
In a series of online posts, Demirci shared Demirdaş's photo and accused him of being a "terror sympathizer.”
He also labeled Demirdaş as a “fake journalist” and insulted his character and family, adding, “Everyone knows what kind of person you are.”
The report was 'factual'
Demirdaş explained to bianet that his report, titled “Veysel Demirci Wins Another Tender,” was published on Aug 17. It detailed the 460 million lira contract awarded to Demirci’s company for a project in Adana and highlighted other government contracts that Ziver Holding has secured.
The journalist emphasized that his report was based on factual data obtained from the Electronic Public Procurement Platform (EKAP) and contained no falsehoods or insults.
He pointed out that Demirci could have responded through legal channels if he believed the report was inaccurate, but instead chose to target him personally.
Demirdaş expressed concern over the growing trend of targeting journalists who report on sensitive issues, particularly those related to government contracts. He noted that this is not the first time Demirci has attacked journalists, recalling a similar incident involving Halk TV’s Ferit Demir.
Despite these threats, Demirdaş remains undeterred, saying, "Such threats only motivate me to pursue more reporting."
Demirdaş intends to file a criminal complaint against the businessperson for the threats and accusations. He emphasized that the public has a right to know how taxpayer money is being spent and that the government contracts awarded to Ziver Holding, totaling over 10 billion liras, are a matter of public interest.
bianet attempted to reach Ziver Holding Veysel Demirci for comment but was unable to make contact.
Tax records
Ziver İnşaat's tax records also raise questions. Despite securing contracts worth 633.9 million liras in 2021, the company declared a profit of only 9.2 million liras and paid just 2.3 million liras in taxes.
In 2022, the company declared a taxable income of 100.7 million liras and paid 23.1 million liras in taxes, while in 2023, it declared a taxable income of 24.8 million liras and paid 6.2 million liras in taxes. (HA/VK)