GOOD MORNING--TURKEY PRESS SCAN ON MAY 8
Güncelleme Tarihi:
These are some of the major headlines and their summaries in the Turkish press on May 8, 2009. Hurriyet Daily News Online does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
HURRIYET
-- CREATING OBSTACLES IN ERGENEKON
Without mentioning names, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan again blamed Republican People's Party, or CHP, leader Deniz Baykal for intervening in the Ergenekon case. Erdogan, who had previously stated that "he was the prosecutor in the Ergenekon probe," said somebody was trying to create obstacles in the Ergenekon case. "I do not act as a party during the ongoing judicial process," he said.
-- TENDER FOR TURKISH LOTTERY TURNS INTO DRAMA
This year's biggest tender – aiming for the privatization of the Turkish national lottery – was held with the participation of two bidders. Greek OPAP-DAF consortium and Turkish Turkcell's lottery games investment company did not increase their offers in the tender. The only offer submitted during the 10-minute tender was $1.6 billion, which was the lowest amount sought by the tender committee. The tender was canceled.
MILLIYET
-- BUYUKANIT: ‘I'M NOT REGRETFUL FOR APRIL 27’
Retired Gen. Yasar Buyukanit, who announced that he was the one who wrote the April 27 declaration widely known as the "e-memorandum," said he was not regretful for it. Buyukanit, who was the guest of Mehmet Ali Birand's live news program "32. Gun (32nd Day)," gave the following answer to a question about whether he regretted that declaration as it created the impression that it earned a great deal of votes for the Justice and Development Party, or AKP: "No, the Constitutional Court's decision proved us right. We thought what a well-directed decision that was."
-- ARINC PRAISES EDUCATION CAMPAIGN
Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc, who commented on the massacre in Mardin during a live broadcast on NTV channel, said the literacy rate among girls in the region was very low. "The prime minister's wife brought forward the issue of sending girls to school, and the first lady pioneered it. One of the media groups made important contributions, and the result was the campaign known as ‘Dad, send me to school.’ And it was very useful," said Arinc.
SABAH
-- WIND OF PEACE IN CAUCASUS
President Ilham Aliyev of
-- ERDOGAN: THEY TRY TO HAMPER ERGENEKON CASE
Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said he did not take a side or act as a party in the Ergenekon case. "Somebody is trying to hamper this case. No matter what they do, we believe in the law," he said.
VATAN
-- BUYUKANIT: I COULD NOT HAVE STOPPED IT WITH A COUPLE OF TANKS
Former General Staff chief retired Gen. Yasar Buyukanit made comments eight months after the end of his term in office. Commenting on the detention of several retired generals under the Ergenekon case, Buyukanit said the law did not allow military forces to take an initiative during searches carried out in military stations. "Can the chief of General Staff say that he does not respect the law and that he will not let officials in during the search? Or can he bring a couple of tanks? What kind of state of law would that be?" he said. Buyukanit also said he was sure his telephone was tapped while he was the chief of General Staff.
-- SWINE FLU PANIC IN TURKISH EMBASSY IN
The 7-year-old son of an official working at the Turkish Embassy in Washington, D.C., showed signs of swine flu and following several medical tests it was understood that the little boy and one of his friends carried the "A1 virus.” The two families were put under quarantine.
CUMHURIYET
-- PAKSUT MONITORED COINCIDENTALLY
Prosecutors claimed that Constitutional Court Vice President Osman Paksut made phone calls with a commercial line provided to his wife, and his calls were monitored "coincidentally," adding that certain issues that constitute a crime were mentioned during the phone calls. Paksut on the other hand, had announced that in the phone tap records that were listed in the appendix of the second indictment he was mentioned as the target of the phone tapping. Paksut had filed a criminal complaint about the prosecutors.
-- PRESIDENT OF SUPREME COURT OF APPEALS: DO NOT UNDERMINE PRINCIPLES
Supreme Court of Appeals President Hasan Gerceker stressed that the unchangeable principles should not be undermined while a new constitution was being drawn, noting that the appointment of members to the Constitutional Court by Parliament would turn the judiciary upside down. Hasan Gerceker said democracy was a regime of freedoms and pointed out that this could only be provided through the rule of law. He said political rule could be restricted in the name of personal freedoms and rights.
RADIKAL
-- GUL HOPEFUL: WE HAVE TO SOLVE PROBLEMS IN CAUCASUS BY 2009
President Abdullah Gul got together with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan following their agreement on principle. Gul was highly pleased with the accelerating momentum for peace. "2009 is the year of opportunity for a solution in the
-- LOTTERY SALE DURING CRISIS DID NOT GO WELL
The privatization tender for the National Lottery held at a time of crisis created frustration. The two participating companies found the initial bidding price of 1 billion Turkish Liras too high. The tender was canceled.
YENI SAFAK
-- LOTTERY TENDER CANCELED
The tender for the National Lottery was canceled as the two competing consortia did not give offers over the opening bidding price of $1.62 million. After the tender, which lasted for five minutes, one of the member companies of the bidding consortia said the opening price was unreasonable.
-- BANK PROFITS IN Q1 RISE 33 PERCENT
The year-on-year profit of banks in the first quarter of 2009 reached 5.2 billion Turkish Liras, a 33 percent rise from last year's 3.9 billion liras. Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency Chairman Tevfik Bilgin said the capital adequacy ratio of the sector as of March reached 18.52 percent.