Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) parliamentary group deputy chairman Özgür Özel on Monday lambasted Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım over the Paradise Papers, which indicate that the sons of the Turkish prime minister are involved in offshore holdings, while CHP deputy Faik Öztrak called on Yıldırım to respond to revelations in the Paradise Papers.
According to materials published by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) on Nov. 5, Erkam Yıldırım and Bülent Yıldırım are the adult sons of the Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım, whose family made its fortune in the shipping industry. The brothers are the sole shareholders of two companies registered in Malta: Hawke Bay Marine Co. Ltd., which was set up in April 2004 and according to public records owns or manages shipping vessels; and Black Eagle Marine Co. Ltd., incorporated in January 2007.
Recalling that Binali Yıldırım always uses the terms “national” and “indigenous,” Özel said: “In order to conduct trade, their children establish companies in Malta. They call on people to use ‘national’ and ‘indigenous’ money, but they use American money.”
Özel claimed that Prime Minister Yıldırım will not discuss the visa crisis but will instead talk about marketing Turkey’s Wealth Fund and will seek support from the Jewish lobby during a visit to the US on Nov.7-11.
Strongly criticizing Yıldırım on Twitter, CHP deputy Öztrak said: “The prime minister, who recently presented a new budget bill to Parliament to collect TL 614 billion in duty from the public in 2018, should immediately issue a statement to the public regarding the revelations about his family’s offshore companies.”