Questions Over Missing Billions Pose Challenge for Erdogan
Voice of America
ISTANBUL - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan could be finding himself cornered over opposition claims that his government $128 billion squandered in defending Turkey's currency, the lira.
Throughout Turkey, giant banners emblazoned with the words "where is the $128 billion?" hang from party offices of the main opposition, People's Republican Party, CHP. Advertising trucks and vans carry images asking the same question, along with posters on billboards across the country, some with just the words "$128 billion Where?" In Istanbul, the governor ordered the banners taken down, claiming they violated COVID restrictions. Video of the police taking down the huge posters in the middle of the night went viral on social media, only fueling more interest. The CHP has countered by simply using the number 128, which has become synonymous with demands for accounting of the lost billions of dollars.
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