Usar: Protocol Grants Tax Exemptions and Exclusive Rights

Speaking from the parliamentary rostrum, Usar İncirli said the country has been in a state of “turbulence” since last week. She noted that the opposition had given the government valuable time to resolve the issue through reason, but argued that the time had been wasted and no progress had been made.

She stressed that no one opposes the need for a fibre optic infrastructure, but said a matter on which there was broad consensus had been “turned into a disaster.” According to Usar İncirli, the government failed even to examine whether the protocol complies with the Constitution or how it would operate in practice.

“Where was your mind when you signed this protocol?” she asked.

Referring to the Constitution, laws and the judiciary, Usar İncirli said the government had not considered whether what it was doing was legally appropriate. She accused the government of acting recklessly, saying, “With the ship you have burned, it is unclear where you are heading,” and added that her party’s concern was for the future of public institutions and the rule of law.

Warning that the protocol would lead to monopolisation, Usar İncirli said she did not want to believe that the government was prepared to accept such serious consequences. She argued that the executive was attempting to put itself in place of the legislature and underlined that the protocol includes tax exemptions and the transfer of exclusive rights.

Describing the protocol as unconstitutional, Usar İncirli warned that if it proceeds to the General Assembly in its current form, it would shake the very foundations of governance.