Turkish police detained Wednesday, August 22, five people including two bureaucrats as part of an investigation into suspected large-scale corruption in the public works and housing ministry, the minister in charge said.
The detainees were two ministry officials and three contractors, who allegedly colluded to win tenders over the past 10 years, Public Works and Housing Minister Koray Aydin told reporters.
The investigation was secretly launched two months ago by the department of organized crime in cooperation with judicial authorities, Aydin said. The suspects stand accused of tampering with bid documents to ensure that certain companies win projects for a higher price than appropriate, thus causing financial losses to the state, Aydin said.
Between 150 and 200 companies were thought to have made profited from the scheme, he added. The minister said he supported expanding the probe even if the trial leads to senior officials in the ministry.
Asked whether the prosecution was also looking into a project to build some 42,000 homes for victims of two devastating quakes in 1999, Aydin said: "Anything can be investigated."
Corruption is one of the most serious problems undermining Turkey's ailing political system and many see it as the root cause of recent financial turmoil. The crisis itself erupted in February when an unprecedented public row between Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit and President Ahmet Necdet Sezer over ways to fight corruption led to a complete confidence breakdown at the volatile financial markets.
A massive corruption probe into multi-million-dollar energy tenders forced former energy minister Cumhur Ersumer to step down in April. ― (AFP, Ankara)
© Agence France Presse 2001
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
