Turkey on Wednesday, September 19, named a politician from the ruling coalition's far-right wing as housing and civil works minister following the resignation of the former minister amid allegations of widespread corruption in his ministry. "We have appointed Abdulkadir Akcan as housing minister," Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit told reporters outside his office.
The 49-year-old Akcan, a veterinarian by profession and a member of the far-right Nationalist Action Party (MHP), replaces Koray Aydin who resigned earlier this month after an investigation was launched into the corruption allegations. In announcing his resignation, Aydin had said that he was quitting both his ministerial post and his parliamentary seat to facilitate the handling of the investigation.
The probe into the housing and civil works ministry, which was made public on August 22, centers on alleged practices over the past decade involving collusion between ministry officials and contractors in the submission of bids to allow some firms to win contracts at inflated prices.
Several dozen people, including ministry officials and contractors, have been detained during the probe, but have not yet been formally charged. The government has vowed to eradicate corruption, a chronic problem ailing the country's political system, as part of an economic recovery program backed by the International Monetary Fund. ― (AFP, Riyadh)
© Agence France Presse 2001
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
