North ‘parliament speaker’ reported to police over alleged fake diploma lawbreaking

The north’s ‘parliament speaker’ Ziya Ozturkler has been reported to the police over allegations that he coerced university officials to award degree certificates to his political allies under false pretences, former Turkish Cypriot chief negotiator Kudret Ozersay said on Wednesday.

He said in a video posted on social media that he had made the complaint, and that “I believe that Ziya, who has stated that he will not hide behind parliamentary immunity, will voluntarily give a statement to the police if requested within the scope of an investigation which will be initiated in connection with our complaint”.

On this matter, he pointed out that he had been asked by the Turkish Cypriot police to give a statement in connection with a different investigation while he was a sitting ‘MP’ and the north’s ‘foreign minister’, and that he had done so.

“Therefore, being a member of parliament and having parliamentary immunity does not prevent you from giving a statement to the police or sharing any information, documents, or correspondence you possess,” he said.

Meanwhile, calls for Ozturkler to resign continued to grow, with opposition party the CTP’s Urun Solyali becoming the latest member of the Turkish Cypriot legislature to call for him to relinquish his duties.

“The investigative authorities and the judiciary naturally ask the question of whether a crime was committed. Politics, however, must simultaneously and inevitably ask the following question: Can this office be held under these allegations?” he asked.

He then added that “an office like that of the parliament speaker is no ordinary position”, as it “represents the legislature … impartiality, pluralism, seriousness, and public trust”.

“Insisting on holding onto this office while facing very serious allegations is not defending the presumption of innocence, it is turning the office into a personal line of defence. This attitude drags both parliament and democracy into the centre of the debate,” he said.

He added that “clinging onto one’s seat while the judicial process continues is not respecting the judiciary, but it is clearly using one’s seat as a shield”.

“Resigning is not an admission of guilt. On the contrary, in developed democracies, this behaviour is a requirement of the responsibility to protect the institution and democratic processes. Refusing to relinquish one’s seat is not resistance, it is ethical blindness and political stubbornness,” he said.

To this end, he said that “turning the speaker’s office into a stronghold, an area of oblivion, deeply wounds not only the current debate, but also trust in parliament”.

“This approach is not political morality, but a culture of clinging to power. Democratic maturity is not about holding onto one’s seat under all circumstances, but a culture of clinging onto power,” he said.

The accusations against Ozturkler were first made in a court hearing on Monday, with prosecution witness Serdal Gunduz, who was himself sentenced to 15 years in jail for his part in the “fake diploma scandal”, saying that Ozturkler had pressured university employees into awarding a degree to Fatma Unal, a close personal associate of the north’s ‘prime minister’ Unal Ustel.

Ozturkler denies the accusations, and asked the legislature on Tuesday, “are we going to act based on the reputation of someone who received a 15-year jail sentence and has been convicted on hundreds of counts?”.

During that session, multiple ‘MPs’ called on him to resign, with the CTP’s Dogus Derya labelling him a “liar” and a “fraud”.