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Court calls on Parliament to explain why corruption file not read out

08 May 2014 23:25 (UTC +04:00)

Following a petition submitted to the court by Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) parliamentary group deputy chairman Oktay Vural, the court demanded an explanation from Parliament on why the summary of proceedings could not be examined, a move Vural says goes against standard procedure. It sparked major criticism from opposition parties, who claimed that the government was trying to hush up damning evidence revealed by a corruption investigation that went public on Dec. 17. The Parliament Speaker's Office is supposed to deliver its written explanation to the court within 30 days.

In his petition, Oktay said that the practice of the Parliament Speaker's Office was clearly against the law, adding: “The fact that deputies in Parliament were prevented from examining the summaries of proceedings, although there was no constitutional or legal obstacle regarding the issue, is unlawful and an usurpation of power. Typically, any summary or proceedings sent to Parliament are examined in front of all deputies. A practice that prevents this cannot exist in a democratic state of law. How can it be possible for deputies to make proper and appropriate decisions on a summary of proceedings if they have failed to examine its contents?”

Holding a press conference at Parliament on Thursday regarding his petition's acceptance by the court, Vural said: “I had applied to the Parliament Speaker's Office to be able to examine the summaries of proceedings prepared against the four ministers. When the office refused my application, I applied to an administrative court. The court discussed my application and accepted my petition. It has asked for an explanation from the Parliament Speaker's Office.” He added that he hopes the deputies will get the chance to examine the summaries of proceedings.

The summaries of prosecutorial proceedings target former Economy Minister Zafer ÇaÄŸlayan, former Interior Minister Muammer Güler, former European Union Affairs Minister Egemen BaÄŸÄ±ÅŸ and former Environment and Urban Planning Minister ErdoÄŸan Bayraktar, all of whom resigned one week after the Dec. 17 corruption scandal went public. The four ministers were allegedly involved in corruption and bribery.