ISTANBUL — Istanbul’s popular mayor went on trial Thursday on charges that he was involved in the alleged rigging of bids on a tender dating back to 2015. Critics have called the trial another politically motivated “plot” aiming to remove the opposition politician from the political scene.
Ekrem Imamoglu, who is widely considered a possible future leader of the country’s main opposition Republican People’s Party, or CHP, is facing up to seven years in prison as well as a political ban if found guilty of the charge, which stems from the time he was mayor of the Istanbul district of Beylikduzu. He served in that office from 2014 to 2019, when he became mayor of Istanbul.
Last year, a court convicted Imamoglu of charges of insulting members of Turkey Supreme Electoral Council and sentenced him to more than two years and seven months in prison. The court also imposed a political ban that could lead to his removal from office.
The mayor, who denies insulting the electoral council members, is appealing his conviction.
In the new case, Imamoglu is accused of giving the tender to a company that allegedly did not meet the required conditions, causing the Beylikduzu municipality financial losses. His office denies the charge and says it was raised even though the court of auditors had previously cleared Imamoglu of the accusation.
Imamoglu did not attend Thursday’s hearing. Six of his former colleagues at the Beylikduzu municipality are also on trial.
“This is a political plot,” said Gokhan Gunaydin, a CHP legislator who attended the trial. “This case will explode in the hands of those who opened it.”
Imamoglu, 52, was elected to lead Istanbul in March 2019. His win was a historic blow to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the president’s Justice and Development Party, which had controlled Istanbul for a quarter-century. The party pushed to void the municipal election results in the city of 16 million, alleging irregularities.
The challenge resulted in a repeat of the election a few months later, which Imamoglu also won.
Erdogan was reelected the country's presiden t last month following a runoff race against CHP’s leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu. Erdogan's challenger now faces increased pressure to step down as party chairman following his defeat.
Sourse: abcnews.go.com
