Ankara's mayor vows to fight AKP-corruption

The opposition mayor of Turkish capital Ankara on Monday vowed that he would become personally involved in any corruption case filed against municipal staff during his time in office.

Mansur Yavaş made the remarks during a live streaming of a City Council meeting in Ankara, part of the Republican People’s Party (CHP) mayor’s efforts in offering a more transparent local governance.

Members of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its coalition ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) have sabotaged Yavaş's speech before the mayor was expected to reveal details of several corruption investigations against former AKP-led municipalities.

The mayor said that they have submitted 100 files to the prosecutor's office concerning major corruption and mismanagement undertaken during the years of former AKP administration.

“Public loss is equal to 2.8 quadrillion liras for just six of the corruption files. And for approximately 40 criminal complaints, the public loss has been determined to be 3 quadrillion liras,” Yavaş said.

The statements caused major embarrassment for the ruling Justice and Development Party.