Energy minister criticizes Turkey's southeastern municipality in electricity debt crisis

Referring to the latest electricity supply crisis between grid firm DEDA? and some of Turkey?s southeastern municipalities due to unpaid debts, Energy Minister Taner Y?ld?z said Turkey?s southeastern province of Diyarbak?r?s Metropolitan Municipality could not just say they will not pay their debts.

?A much as the state has a debt toward the citizens, so do the citizens have a debt toward the state. The mayor in Diyarbak?r who does not pay her debt has to pay the $265 million,? said Y?ld?z during a speech at the ruling Justice and Development Party?s (AKP) provincial congress in the Central Anatolian province of Kayseri Jan. 25.

DEDA?, an electricity grid firm, cut power to water refining plants in Diyarbak?r after stating the Diyarbak?r Metropolitan Municipality was in debt. In return, municipalities closed DEDA? facilities and dug ditches around the DEDA? headquarters to prevent entrance on the grounds that it was conducting sewage work.

Stating that similar debt payment problems had emerged in the eastern provinces of Batman and ??rnak, Y?ld?z said the municipalities in these two cities had agreed upon a payment plan with the company.

?The grid company said ?give me a payment plan,? to repay the debt, but the Diyarbak?r Municipality did not announce a plan,? said Y?ld?z, adding that the Diyarbak?r municipality had said previous debts were not their business.

?[By doing so] the Diyarbak?r Municipality is being unfair to the citizens of Diyarbak?r, too,? Y?ld?z said.