Turkish Police Tear Down Opposition Posters Questioning Bank Reserves

A CHP branch with a poster asking: "Where are 128 billion dollars?" Photo: CHP Silivri Branch

The CHP has been organising a campaign about the fate the Turkish Central Bank reserves on social media and later put up the banners on its buildings and billboards.

"We understand the cranes but why water cannons and riot police? Don't be afraid of the CHP; be afraid of the illegal works you do and the crimes you commit," Canan Kaftancıoglu, the head CHP in Istanbul, wrote on Twitter on Wednesday morning.

The leader of the CHP, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, also criticized the police intervention. "In the middle of the night … you [President Recep Tayyip Erdogan] sent police special forces to our party branches. The reason was to tear down the 'Where are 128 billion dollars' posters! We are asking about the money of the poor, those in need and orphans," Kilicdaroglu said on Twitter.

İktidar sahipleri sorduğumuz soruyu beğenmemiş olacaklar ki, pankartımız kolluk kuvvetlerince vinç yardımı ile kaldırılmıştır.

Cevaplamak istemediğiniz sorulardan bu şekilde kaçamazsınız; Bizim inadımız 128 milyardan bile daha büyüktür. İnatla soracağız!#128MilyarDolarNerede ? pic.twitter.com/AiURvf7lJi

— CHP SİLİVRİ İLÇE BAŞKANLIĞI (@silivrichp) April 13, 2021

Prosecutors' office in Istanbul ordered the police into action because the slogans allegedly insulted President Erdogan.

During the finance ministry of Erdogan's son-in-law, Berat Albayrak, the bank used 128 billion US dollars, almost its entire reserves, to halt the fall in value of the lira, but the action failed.

On July 9 2018, when Albayrak became Minister of Finance, a US dollar was equal to 4.55 Turkish lira. Today one dollar equals just over 8 lira.