Opposition leader Akşener donates salary to Istanbul, Ankara mayors' coronavirus fight

Duvar English

Opposition Good (İYİ) Party leader Meral Akşener has said that she donated money to Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş and Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu's campaigns that were launched to curb the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).

"I donated my three-month salary to Ankara and another three to Istanbul," Akşener said in an interview on March 31, as she also slammed President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for launching a campaign to collect donations from Turkish citizens to contain the impact of the pandemic.

"We were expecting Erdoğan to announce financial aid to those in need, but he launched a donation campaign," she said.

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In his address to the nation, Erdoğan asked people to donate money for those in need, saying he was donating seven months of his salary to the cause and that the effort had already drawn $11 million.

During the interview, Akşener said that Erdoğan's donation is not sufficient.

"I have a suggestion to Erdoğan. His salary won't be enough. He should donate his famous Qatari plane worth $500 million," she said, referring to a plane that Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim Al Thani gifted to Erdoğan in 2018.

Akşener also slammed the government for leaving local authorities alone in the fight against the virus.

"I've been following what mayors of Istanbul and Ankara are doing. I wish the government joined forces with local authorities without discriminating any. I'm seeing that they were left alone by the government," she said.