Catering firm thought to be responsible for food poisoning at a base in Turkey still serving meals
HÜSEYİN ŞİMŞEK
huseyinsimsek@birgun.net / @simsekhuseyinn
The pro-government firm, Rota, which had been serving meals to a military base in Turkey’s Manisa province, continues to provide food to 11 more barracks although its contract with the Manisa First Infantry Training Brigade Command was cancelled after the most recent food poisoning outbreak.
Pointing out that the risk remains since the Rota firm’s business in other barracaks continue, Manisa MP of CHP Tur Yıldız Biçer requested from government officials for the names of those other bases getting food from Rota to be revealed.
As the most recent incident was the forth outbreak of food poisoning in military bases in Manisa within the past 27 days, eyes are turned to Rota Catering and government officials who refused to cancel the contract with the firm after the first poisoining, which caused a young soldier to die.
Although names of several institutions, such as Şişli Etfal Hospital, Ankara Hospital, Ulucanlar Hospital, Mamak Dentistry, Zekai Tahir Burak Women’s Hospital, are stated in the firm’s official website as places that they serve meals to, neither the name of the Manisa First Infantry Training Brigade Command nor the names of other military bases are mentioned.
Having been closely monitoring the issue since the very first outbreak, CHP MP Tur Yıldız Biçer talked to BirGün on Monday (June 19) while she was also attending the Justice March. Biçer stated that she has not received any response from government officials to her questions about what other bases are still catered meals by Rota.
Asserting that the firm is being ‘protected’ by the government, MP Biçer said ‘if the firm had got rid of its infectious stocks instead of trying to use them all up, nearly 5000 soldiers would not have been affected in just one month.’
Biçer also called on the Defense Minister Fikri Işık to resign and said ‘instead of firing the workers in the kitchen, those who are actually responsible’ should be brought to justice...
Biçer added: “5000 of our soldiers got poisoned because of the catering agreement done by the Ministry of National Defense. 72 hours after the first incident (in May), salmonella bacteria was detected in samples of turkey meat taken from the base...
Instead of terminating the contract (with Rota Catering) after those first 72 hours, the Ministry waited until about 3000 more soldier got poisoned a few days ago... The Minister was forced to come to Manisa that night due to pressure from public; and, there, he annoucned that the agreement has been terminated. And, the police department carried out an operation and took into custody people working at Rota frim... We have to talk over whether this poisoning occured due to water, earthquate, and nature or due to the fact that a pro-government firm has been trying to cover their faults by getting support from the authorities...”
Although salmonella had been found in the first examination of the meal samples in May, government officials claimed there was ‘no scientific evidence’.
CHP’s members in parliamentary commission on defense submitted a written statment to the presidency of the parliament calling on government authorities to provide satisfactory response to questions related to the issue and related to the actual cause of the poisoning...
Criticizing the government over its ‘inconsiderate approach’, CHP MP Tüzün said: “Who are these kinds of firms protected and favored by? Those who try to become heroes by using our soldiers should first provide the soldiers with proper meals before deploying troops in Qatar.”
Front-page article of BirGün published on 20 June 2017, Tuesday with the title of 'The same firm is still providing meals for 11 other military bases'