Turkey Opposition Chief Says Won’t Pay Power Bill as Prices Bite
- Kemal Kilicdaroglu urges the government to reverse price hikes
- Citizens vent anger on social media over exorbitant bills
Kemal Kilicdaroglu
Photographer: Adem Altan/AFP/Getty Images
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Riding a wave of popular anger over rampant inflation, Turkey’s main opposition leader announced he won’t pay his electricity bills until the government reverses price hikes but stopped short of calling on citizens to follow his example.
Addressing the nation in a Twitter video posted late Wednesday, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, head of the Republican People’s Party, blamed surging bills on utility privatizations that he said benefited a handful of cronies. He urged President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to undo the price increases and reduce taxes on electricity consumption.