Turkish Competition Authority member employed by company she was investigating

A CHP deputy presented a series of parliamentary inquiries about the employment of a Competition Authority member by the company that she was investigating. CHP Deputy Murat Emir asked how the Trade Ministry allowed the member's employment by online shopping platform Trendyol when "it's clearly an ethical violation."

Monday April 19 2021 12:53 pm

Duvar English

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) deputy Murat Emir presented a series of parliamentary questions about the employment of a Competition Authority member by the company they were conducting an investigation about, the daily BirGün reported on April 19.

Competition Authority member Hatice Yavuz was the lead investigator in the audit of online shopping platform Trendyol before she was employed by the company, raising questions about the integrity of the initial inspection.

Trendyol is owned by the Chinese online shopping company Alibaba, which was fined $2.8 billion for a violation of Chinese competition laws, Emir noted.

"[Yavuz's] employment has raised questions about whether the ruling will be fair about Trendyol when they've been working to push domestic competitors out of the market," Emir said.

Emir asked how much Yavuz had been paid in her position on the Competition Authority, and how much her salary had changed at Trendyol.

"How did the Trade Ministry allow for this transfer when it's clearly an ethical violation for a board member to be employed by the company they're investigating?" Emir also said in his inquiry.

The deputy further asked how many investigations the authority had in motion about online shopping platforms and the distribution of these companies' ownership between Turkey and abroad.