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Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul on December 9, 2019. AFP Photos / Ozan Kose

For six months, the government has been doing everything to put a spanner in the works for the new mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu. The public banks, the main creditors of the town hall for decades, notably refuse to finance it.

With our correspondent in Istanbul, Anne Andlauer

Just six months ago, on June 23, 2019, a political earthquake rocked Turkey: Istanbul, the country's largest city, passed into the hands of the opposition. After 25 years of reign, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan experienced the loss of this megalopolis as a humiliation. He still hasn't digested it.

The day after his election, the new mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu , had reached out to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan , calling on him to " work together ". Instead, the central government has worked for the past six months to bypass the new mayor's efforts.

Refusal of loans from public banks

Since his election, state-owned banks have refused to lend him a single cent, even though they have been crediting the mayor of the largest Turkish city for decades. To finance his projects and settle current expenses, Ekrem Imamoglu had to turn to private banks and foreign creditors.

Tarik Balyali, spokesman for the municipal council of the CHP (People's Republican Party), the mayor's party, finds the situation absurd: " All of the town hall's accounts are held in these state banks," he explains. All municipal employees' salaries are paid from these accounts. And despite this, we are denied any credit ! "

Order " from above "

This elected official has no doubts. Order came " from above " from the top of the state. And the objective is just as clear to him: " The goal is obviously to complicate our task, to prevent us from satisfying the Stambouliotes," he continues. But the harm you do to the city hall of Istanbul, you do it to all its inhabitants and, ultimately, to all of Turkey. It is therefore illogical and, in my opinion, counterproductive ”.

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Istanbul is not the only one concerned. All the large municipalities won by the opposition to the last municipal ones, including the capital Ankara, face the same refusal of credit from the public establishments which have financed them so far.