General Assembly Continues with Speeches.
Republican Turkish Party (CTP) İskele Deputy Fide Kürşat delivered a speech on the issues plaguing the Turkish Cypriot community, namely inflation, increasing production costs, declining purchasing power, and poverty. Kürşat highlighted the inflation data of the TRNC statistical institution, which reported a 67% increase in prices in one year. He also noted that Turkey was the G7 country with the highest inflation data, after Argentina, with around 50%. Kürşat pointed out that the TRNC does not have its own currency, causing an annual inflation rate of 94.5%. He also criticized the problems caused by foreign exchange for all consumer goods entering the country and the increase in foreign currency predicted after the elections in Turkey. The hunger limit was declared as 14 thousand 148 last week, while the minimum wage and purchase power of the public are constantly decreasing, leading to a market phobia. Kürşat urged for serious efforts to switch to a stable currency and suggested setting an upper limit for basic foods like in Southern Cyprus. Meanwhile, Republican Turkish Party (CTP) Nicosia Deputy Filiz Besim focused on Thalassaemia, a blood disease affecting the Turkish Cypriot community, and suggested early examinations to detect health problems in the country. Democratic Party (DP) Girne Deputy Serhat Akpınar spoke about the need to update laws and institutions in the country, including higher education and YODAK, to meet the future needs of the community. Overall, deputies requested immediate actions and solutions to address the urgent issues faced by the community.
