Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mansur Yavaş announced the 'Minimum Wage Support Program', which is a first for municipalities in Turkey. Within the scope of the package, minimum wage earners will also be able to benefit from social supports such as cash support, natural gas support, protein support, stationery support, canteen support, transportation support, bread support, milk support and water discount. In addition, citizens' examination and medicine co-payments will be paid by ABB upon application.
· Stating that Turkey's real agenda is hunger and poverty in his speech, Mansur Yavaş said, “Instead of collecting high taxes from high earners to reduce inflation, they put the burden on low incomes as they have been doing for years. This is what we are not watching. As an administrator, we will not watch this, we will not let our people freeze in their homes, we will not let them die of hunger, we will not watch this incompetence of the government.”
· Yavaş: “This treatment and the salaries that are deemed worthy to retirees who produce by sweating, work with sweat, and have served this country for years are a shame for those who govern this country. As long as these are not eliminated, what difference does it make if you become president? Which office can compensate for these? I am calling out from here: We are with you.”
Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mansur Yavaş announced the 'Minimum Wage Support Program', which is a first among municipalities in Turkey, at a press conference.
The meeting held in the Conference Hall was attended by district mayors, representatives of political parties, bureaucrats, as well as retirees and members of the Ankara City Council Retirement Assembly.
“WE WORK WITH AN UNDERSTANDING THAT DOES NOT LEAVE ANY OF OUR CITIZENS ALONE IN THEIR FATE”
Mansur Yavaş, who began his speech at the meeting by commemorating those who lost their lives in the earthquakes that occurred on February 6, 2023, said, “February 6 remained a deep wound in all of our hearts. We woke up in the morning and saw that our cities were destroyed, homes were scattered, people left their loved ones under the rubble, and our hopes were scattered along with the dust of the rubble. As Ankara, we have not left any of our citizens alone since that day. And we will not… Although two years have passed, 920 earthquake victim brothers and sisters continue their lives in our facilities. For us, they are not guests, they are now a part of this city. We did not only offer them a roof, we offered them a friendly hand, a glimmer of hope. Because we work with an understanding that does not leave any of our citizens alone in their fate. Without forgetting February 6, we will continue to heal our wounds by sharing the pain and expanding consultation.”
“TURKEY’S REAL AGENDA IS HUNGER AND POVERTY”
Starting his statements regarding the ‘Minimum Wage Support Program’ by stating that the real agenda of Turkey is economic difficulties, ABB President Mansur Yavaş said, “A little child who touched all our hearts recently, the voice rising from him was the cry of ‘My mother has no money. Don’t take me to the hospital’… This cry is everywhere in Turkey today. Turkey’s real agenda is hunger and poverty. People shivering in the cold, walking around hungry… A solution should be sought for their problems… If the current government cannot solve their problems, all municipalities run by the Republican People’s Party would not prioritize this side with the understanding of a social state. These words that make us all ache were actually the silent cry of not just a child, but thousands of people who carry the burden of life on their shoulders. Our dream is a country where children grow up with hope, joy and security, not money, impossibilities and helplessness. They expect this from those in power.”
“WE WILL NOT WATCH THIS INCOMPETENCE OF THE GOVERNMENT”
In his speech, Yavaş also gave information about the social support they provided as ABB, and criticized the taxes collected from low-income citizens and said the following:
“Instead of collecting more taxes from those who earn more to reduce inflation, they have placed the burden on low-income groups as they have for years. This is what we are not watching. As an administrator, we will not watch this, we will not let our people freeze in their homes, we will not let them die of hunger, we will not watch this incompetence of the government. In fact, we are receiving a lot of criticism. There is a claim that ‘they do not see what the government is doing because you are providing this support’, but a conscientious and compassionate administrator cannot watch this. They need to provide all the support they can and prioritize this, and this is what we are doing.”
Continuing his explanations by mentioning the concept of needy, Yavaş said the following regarding the 'Minimum Wage Support Program':
“So what are we going to do? There are approximately 1 million 438 thousand minimum wage earners in Ankara. We currently support approximately 200 thousand minimum wage earners among over 30 thousand families receiving support. Now, the cash support we will provide, the monthly cash support, we will ask them to participate in a form just like we do for retirees and other social support recipients. We will provide the maximum support we can to these people without disrupting the municipality’s work and considering our budget according to the number received. We give them a free boarding pass for fifty rides to use when going to and from work. If they use two buses, we increase the fee if they document this. These families will drink water for 1 lira per ton, ten liras up to ten tons… We will also provide protein support. We will also provide natural gas support. We will provide shuttle support to the children of these families. As long as their children definitely go to school. Stationery support will also be provided in the same way. We will provide canteen support in the same way. We will provide milk support.”
“AS LONG AS THEY DON’T POSTPONE THEIR HEALTH JUST BECAUSE THEY DON’T HAVE MONEY”
Yavaş stated that if the people of the capital apply, their examination and medicine co-payments will be paid by the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality and said, “As long as they do not hesitate to buy medicine. They do not postpone their health because they do not have money. We will be with them until the end.”
“THE GOVERNMENT HAS CONDEMNED RETIRED PEOPLE AND MINIMUM WAGE WORKERS TO BELOW THE STARVATION LINE”
Mansur Yavaş, who stated that the real agenda of Turkey, hunger and poverty, were covered up with artificial agendas, said, “I think they created these agendas on purpose so that these issues would not be discussed. I claim it. This is our priority, the economy, and if you want to change the government, the first thing to do is to support these poor people, people in need, both as municipalities and opposition parties. The current government has condemned the retired and the minimum wage earner to below the open line. It has preferred to share the country’s resources with some capitalists, not with the retired, but with the minimum wage, and not with the employees.”
“DON’T FORGET THOSE WHO CONDEMNED YOU TO THIS POVERTY”
Yavaş continued his statements by saying, “We cannot say ‘it does not concern us’ to this poverty that the government has created,” and continued his words as follows:
“Whatever we have in our hands, the minimum wage and the retirees whose purchasing power is decreasing every day, whose salary has fallen below the poverty line. This treatment and the salary deemed worthy to retirees who produce by sweating, work with sweat, and have served this country for years is a shame for those who govern this country. As long as these are not eliminated, what difference does it make if you become the president? Which office will compensate for these? I am calling from here: we are with you. We are with our low-income and needy people. We will continue to be with them no matter what the conditions are. Please do not forget those who condemned you to this poverty. Moreover, we are providing these supports even though the government is shaking us. Hopefully these days will pass very quickly and our country will have a fair administration. We will no longer talk about poverty, destitution, and misery, but about beautiful things. Never lose hope. I want to bring the country to its real agenda. I call on all municipalities affiliated with the Republican People's Party to the best of my ability to be a partner in these efforts in the name of social municipalism and to support these people in their own municipalities, provinces and districts. Because if we are not with them today, it will not matter if we are with them tomorrow.”
Minimum wage earners who want to benefit from support https://sosyalhizmetler.ankara.bel.tr/asgari-destek-programi You can apply via the address.
