25.01.2025 19:12
The leader of the CHP, Özgür Özel, reacted to Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç's use of the term "pirate" regarding the preliminary report prepared by the expert committee concerning the fire disaster at the Bolu Grand Kartal Hotel, where 78 people lost their lives. Özel stated, "That report does not belong to the Minister of Justice; it belongs to the people. It is a guarantee of the people's quest for justice."
CHP General Chairman Özgür Özel made statements regarding the agenda before the mayors' meeting to be held in İzmir. Özel responded to Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç's remarks about the preliminary report prepared regarding the fire disaster at Bolu Grand Kartal Hotel, where 78 people lost their lives, which he also shared. Özel pointed out that Minister Tunç referred to the report as "pirate" rather than "fake," emphasizing that the method of obtaining the report was "pirate." Özel also stated that ministry officials pressured the committee to alter the report.
"PRESSURE WAS APPLIED TO THE EXPERTS"
Özel indicated that they would propose the establishment of an Investigation Commission in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey regarding the hotel fire disaster in Kartalkaya, stating: "We are at a breaking point. There was an intervention in justice yesterday. In response, we took the initiative and did what was necessary. I will announce for the first time that a seven-member committee was assigned. This committee prepared a report. Four prosecutors and seven experts finalized the report. The summary of the report is as follows: It lists the responsible parties. Among the responsible parties are the Provincial Special Administration and the ministry. It does not hold Bolu Municipality responsible.
They do not accept this report as it is. They say, 'Change this.' They say, 'Add the municipality, remove the ministry.' There is pressure coming from the ministry to Bolu and the experts. The moment I heard this, I called the Justice Minister. The moment I heard this, I called the Interior Minister, who had provided assurance regarding the process. One of our ministers was in Malatya. The other one probably preferred not to communicate with us that day because he knew how we would react to the work he was busy with. Following this, I called Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz. I conveyed all the information I had regarding the process to him.
"WHY DID HE SHARE?"
I did this the moment they rejected this report and even told the committee, 'You withdraw from your duties, let another committee come and prepare a new report.' I also shared the committee's report with the public. The Justice Minister called this report a 'pirate report.' What does this mean? He is not saying it is a fake report. How can something be pirate? It must be a report written by unauthorized individuals.
The authorization letter is on the first page of the investigation file. Those experts examined the hotel's camera recordings under the gendarmerie's report from the moment the incident occurred and they were assigned. They took measurements at the hotel. They worked for days. In every one of their works, there are gendarmerie's reports and names. This means that the committee is not pirate, the report is not pirate, it is not fake.
"THE METHOD OF OBTAINING IS PIRATE"
To call it a pirate report… What is he calling pirate? The method of obtaining it. If something is forcibly obtained without the owner's consent, it can be referred to as a piracy activity. The report is real, the method of obtaining is pirate. That report does not belong to the Justice Minister; it belongs to the people. It is the assurance of the people's quest for justice. Our publicizing that report is based on their rejection of the report and saying, 'We will assign a new committee.' What we did is to defend the quest for justice. In fact, we prevented a piracy activity against the truth. We prevented a piracy activity aimed at concealing the truth and forgery.
HE ADDRESSED THE NEW EXPERTS
Özel, drawing attention to the change in rhetoric regarding the committee change following the CHP's reactions, addressed the new experts, saying: "After these interventions, the tone has changed. They say, 'We made additions to the committee.' It is not acceptable to remove any of the existing findings in that report. The public will watch closely. There is nothing the new committee can do regarding the matter of 'saving the ministry, including Bolu Municipality.' The laws are clear. I expect the people in the newly assigned committee to feel the great responsibility towards the 78 lives and their families. I expect those newly added to the committee not to become tools of someone's political operation against justice. Just as the previous committee was entrusted with both personal and professional integrity in the duties they performed... And they did what was necessary. I expect this committee to uphold their professional honor in a way that will not embarrass them and will not leave a dark stain in history, and we are closely following this process."