Önder Can, the trustee appointed to İpekyolu Municipality, first stopped the services of the daycare center, women’s activities and other efforts by the DBP municipality and now he cancelled the library project.
The DBP municipality in Van's central İpekyolu district that took office with great public support in the local elections in 2014 had been drawing attention with the quality services they provided. İpekyolu Municipality had drawn attention especially in the landscape planning, infrastructure, cultural services, daycare centers and solutions to women’s problems, and while these efforts continued, an arrest warrant was issued for Co-mayor Aygül Bidav and the Ministry of Interior Affairs removed her from office. The municipality continued their work despite the fact, and then on September 11, 2016 a trustee was appointed to the municipality by the government.
FIRST ACT WAS TO TURN THE MUNICIPALITY INTO AN OUTPOST
The appointed trustee’s first act was to turn the municipality into an outpost and barred people from the building. The people stopped coming to the municipality, and the trustee was busy cancelling the DBP administration’s ongoing and planned projects. The efforts in environmental, infrastructural, women’s and children’s issues ended thusly.
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE FIRST LIBRARY
The trustee has now cancelled the service building planned to be built in Musa Anter Park. He also cancelled the City Library project planned to be built in the same area. This decision caused a stir among Van residents, who don’t have a library in the city center.
KESER: THESE PEOPLE ARE THE SAME AS THOSE WHO BURNED BOOKS
DBP’s İpekyolu Co-mayor Veysel Keser spoke on the matter and said: “We bought land from Musa Anter Park for the İpekyolu Municipality Service Center and city library projects. The project had received first prize in the national project competition. The tender for the construction had been completed, the firm that offered the most public benefit won the bid. Why have these efforts been stopped? The money for the construction budget, the amount on the tender, is in the municipality’s bank account right now, cash. Stopping or cancelling these projects despite that is the worst thing you can do to these people. This is where the mindset that is afraid of books and libraries brings the country. There is no difference between these people who cancel building of libraries and those who had burned and banned books in the past.”
