5 million families may need help
When taxes and new increases are added to the high inflation environment and decreasing purchasing power due to the depreciation of the Turkish lira, the number of citizens in need of assistance increases day by day. Data from the Ministry of Family and Social Policies on the support provided to citizens reveal how the number of people in need of assistance increases every year. In this context, the electrical support provided to needy citizens once again revealed the extent of poverty.
GIVEN TO 3.7 MILLION PEOPLE
While in 2020 aid was provided to 1 million 801 thousand households that could not pay their bills, this figure increased to 2 million 719 thousand households in 2021. In 2022, 3 million 690 thousand households were supported. CHP Erzincan MP Mustafa Sarıgül, who announced the answers to the question he addressed to Minister of Family and Social Policies Mahinur Özdemir Göktaş, predicted: “This year the support will exceed 5 million households.” Sarıgül said that this support also reveals the extent of poverty and said, “The winter months of 2023 will be darker and colder for citizens.”
Last year, 274,000 homes had their electricity supply cut off and 50,000 homes had their natural gas supply cut off due to debt. Sarıgül stated that due to the impact of the growing economic crisis in 2022, 3 million 690 thousand households had to receive support for electricity consumption, and the amount of support was 4 thousand 72 million TL. Sarıgül pointed out that the number of citizens in need of electricity support has increased rapidly every year since 2019, saying: “Household support, which was 3 million 600 thousand in 2022, will exceed 5 million in 2023.”
Mustafa Sarıgül, CHP Erzincan deputy
The number of people in need does not match the Ministry’s forecasts
The Ministry of Family and Social Policies’ predictions about the number of households it would support were not fulfilled. CHP Erzincan Deputy Mustafa Sarıgül, in his statement to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, said that in 2020 it was planned to support electricity consumption for 1.5 million residences of poor and needy citizens, but it exceeded by 20 percent percent expectations and aid was provided to 1 million 801 thousand households that could not pay their electricity bills. Sarıgül emphasized that the estimated support for 1 million 836 thousand people for 2021 increased to 2 million 719 thousand households.