Just three years ago, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan opened a huge amusement park in Ankara. It happened shortly before the local government elections, in which the ruling party he represented was defeated.
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This month, after two years of legal proceedings, the court ruled that the “Ankapark” project should be managed by the new city council, where the opposition CHP party is in power. The park itself was closed soon after its opening due to heavy losses.
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Mansur Javas, the mayor of Ankara representing the CHP, emphasizes that the “Ankapark” project is an excellent example of how to waste taxpayers’ funds, as the total cost of the project is estimated at 800 million dollars, which would have been better spent on more socially useful projects.
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“With such money, it would be possible to build about 15,000 social housing units or dormitories for several hundred students, as well as to provide other needs of Ankara residents,”
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said Javass after the court verdict, which allows the municipality he leads to take over “Ankapark” under its management.
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Javas’s comments are not flattering for Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development (AK) party, especially as presidential and parliamentary elections are approaching next year. Public opinion polls show that support for Erdogan and the AK Party is shrinking significantly. This political force has been in power in Turkey for almost 20 years.
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