Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality responds to the 'luxury villa' claim about İmamoğlu: Presidential residence.

20.03.2025 19:10

The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality published a 7-point statement regarding the allegations that emerged following the detention of Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu. In the statement, the claim that he was "detained in a million-dollar villa purchased with money obtained through unfair gains" was denied. It was stated that İmamoğlu does not live in a luxury villa, but in the official residence owned by the municipality.

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The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) held a press conference titled "A Coup Against Democracy, Lies and Truths" following the detention of Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu.

In the statement, it was expressed that the claims shared with the public by some media outlets were "false," and the following was noted:

"LUXURY VILLA"

• False: "He was living in luxury, detained in the million-dollar villa he bought with money obtained through unfair gains."



• Truth: IMM President Ekrem İmamoğlu lives with his family in the presidential residence in Sarıyer, which is owned by IMM. This property, previously allocated to a foundation, was transferred to IMM by Ekrem İmamoğlu and has been arranged as a presidential residence for future mayors to use. Just like before 2019, when the ruling party allocated properties with luxury villas in Florya to its mayors, this property was allocated to the Istanbul Planning Agency (IPA) by Ekrem İmamoğlu's directive and opened for the use of the people of Istanbul.

"IRREGULAR TENDERS WERE MADE THROUGH MEDIA INC. AND CULTURE INC."

• False: "Irregular tenders were made through Media Inc. and Culture Inc., and special jobs were given to certain individuals; projects were either not completed or left unfinished."



• Truth: Both IMM subsidiary companies have undergone numerous audits by the Court of Accounts. The rooms allocated to inspectors have always been occupied, and no irregularities have been detected in all inspections conducted. Tenders, service procurements, and contracts related to outdoor advertising media have been audited multiple times. Separate investigations conducted by inspectors from the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Commerce have also found no negative findings. However, hundreds of billions of TL worth of irregularity files identified as a result of internal audits conducted by Ekrem İmamoğlu's instruction regarding the previous period have been seized by the Ministry of Interior. These files include corruption such as the sale of IMM-owned lands to certain individuals at low prices, which were then repurchased by IMM at high prices, million-dollar scholarships allocated to individuals, special vehicle allocations, and expenses incurred in political activities. However, the fate of these files remains unknown.

"HELP WAS GIVEN TO A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION"

• False: "Help was given to a terrorist organization, and members and sympathizers of the organization were employed within IPA and BİMTAŞ."



• Truth: The IMM under Ekrem İmamoğlu has faced such accusations before and has been acquitted in all judicial processes. The claim that "there are 700 terrorists in IMM" was made, but only 41 people were prosecuted in this context, and all were acquitted. The then-Minister of Interior confessed that they had to make these accusations "politically." Hiring at IMM is conducted with great care, and candidates are required not only to provide a criminal record but also to undergo a security investigation. No personnel are hired without the approval of the governorship.

"SOME BUSINESS PEOPLE WERE BLACKMAILED"

• False: "Some business people were blackmailed by forcibly obtaining decisions from the municipal council."



• Truth: Council decisions are subject to the oversight of the IMM Assembly. To date, no objections or claims have been raised by opposition parties regarding this matter.

"A MEDIA INC. EXECUTIVE FLED ABROAD"

• False: "A Media Inc. executive fled abroad."



• Truth: Media Inc. Executive E.G filled out a vacation form and went abroad for a holiday with her mother. After the news of the operation, she decided to return to the country by bringing her return ticket forward and is ready to give a statement.

"DATA WAS USED FOR BLACKMAIL"

• False: "Personal data was collected unlawfully with IMM resources and used for blackmail."



• Truth: IMM President Ekrem İmamoğlu has been very sensitive about public responsibility and has insisted that even the smallest matters be handled within the framework of the Personal Data Protection Law (KVKK); he is a sensitive manager in this regard. No data has been shared except in cases requested by judicial authorities.

"A PARALLEL STRUCTURE WAS ESTABLISHED IN IPA"

• False: "IPA is manipulating statistics by establishing a parallel structure."



• Truth: The cost of living studies regularly published by the Istanbul Planning Agency (IPA) align with the data announced by the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ITO) and cover studies conducted specifically for Istanbul. The studies prepared using scientific methods are carried out under the management of expert academics in the field.