Ankara: A magnitude 5.6 earthquake shook southern Turkiye on Monday three weeks after a catastrophic temblor devastated the region causing some buildings to collapse, an official said. There were no immediate reports of any casualties. Monday's earthquake was centred in the town of Yesilyurt in Malatya province, the country's disaster management agency said.
The devastating earthquake in southern Turkey on February 6, with more than 44,200 people killed, tens of thousands wounded, more than 164,000 buildings destroyed and damage exceeding USD 80 billion, is surely Turkey's worst humanitarian disaster in modern history. It has also forced President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to change the focus of his election campaign.
These elections may turn out to be the most symbolic, dramatic and important in Turkey's modern history, as they will mark the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of Turkey, will decide the course the country will take in the coming decades, and will also determine if Erdogan's 22-year domination of Turkey's pollical life will come to an end or not.
The earthquake has overturned Erdogan's previous political election agenda. Before February 6, his aim was to contain the growing discontent with the rampant inflation, the falling price of the Turkish Lira and the sharp increases in the prices of foodstuffs and energy, by giving salary and pension increases, as well as promises about early retirement.
Now he will try to convince the people of Turkey that he is the only one who can rebuild the destroyed houses and cities in a year (and not in five years as the opposition parties promise) and ensure tolerable living conditions for the tens of thousands who were rendered homeless.
Speaking to the inhabitants of the earthquake-stricken city of Osmaniye, Erdogan said: "You will allow us one year. Within one year, god willing, we will build these permanent houses and settle our citizens. (...) We aim to revive our villages within a year, just like our city centers."
Undoubtedly, Erdogan realizes that it will be extremely difficult -if not impossible- to rebuild 270,000 housing units as he promised and remove the estimated 230 million tons of debris from the destroyed towns and villages, but he wants the people to believe that he is the only politician who can make this happen. (With Agency Inputs)
