Hasan Sertoğlu: Beware bankruptcy More contenders for Lefkoşa Mayor
IF LEFKOŞA Turkish Municipality continues with existing policies, it will be bankrupt in two years — so predicted National Unity Party (UBP) mayoral candidate and former president of the TRNC Football Association ( KTFF) Hasan Sertoğlu. Speaking on TV, he said: “Contrary to what is being claimed, there is massive destruction and failure in Lefkoşa, which has been transformed into a place engulfed in dirt, foul smells, flies, torture on the roads and no pavements, all of which have caused people suffering.
“I have come forward to solve the problems of Lefkoşa and to instigate big projects.”
He claimed current mayor Mehmet Harmancı had taken office pledging to reduced municipal debt, but it had risen by 31 million TL “despite receiving double the contributions from the state and excessive water rates”.
“He took over the municipality when it was 158 million TL in debt. Two councillors have stated that the real debt of the municipality is now 191 million TL. It may even be more . . .
“This debt is to the Provident Fund and social security. It cannot be avoided and has to be paid. If serious measures are not taken now and present practices continue, the municipality will hoist the bankruptcy flag in two years’ time.”
He said the municipality currently employed nearly 800 personnel, declaring: “I am definitely not going to employ permanent staff. The municipality should not employ anyone full-time for at least 10 years. If specialist staff are needed, they could be taken on on a temporary contract for a specific purpose.”
Mr Sertoğlu also criticised traffic management in the capital, pledging to introduce “modern car parks” and commenting: “You can’t fine people when you don’t even have parking spaces.”
He said he would develop a project to modernise “every street in Lefkoşa”, with “smart houses having continuous, uninterrupted, fibre optic internet”, while public transport was also “a problem we want to solve”. THE Rebirth Party (YDP) has changed candidates for the post of Lefkoşa mayor and is now backing Mehmet Ünal Bay.
A statement from the party said that it had decided to drop previously-declared candidate Kemal Altuncuoğlu and replace him with YDP vice-chairman Mr Bay — a media studies graduate born in Gaziantep in 1947 — following an assembly meeting.
Among independents standing for the mayoralty is former parliamentary hopeful Çetin Sadeli, who declared: “Don’t be scared of the [political] parties, let them be scared of you.”
Mr Sadeli contested the general election in January and attracted only 3,200 votes — but also attention for not employing expensive campaign methods.
He said on social media he was now “waiting for friends to approach me, to walk this path with me and to become councillor candidates”.
Also standing is Arif Salih Kı rdağ, contesting his third local election. In a statement on social media, he said: “If I become mayor of Lefkoşa, I will solve the traffic problem of the capital by introducing public transport to provide a permanent solution.”
In another post, he criticised his rival for the post, Gencay Eroğlu, saying: “She lives in Girne as far as I know . . . she should instead come and live in Lefkoşa, which she compares to an African country.”