No solution but plenty of spending
Executive ministries, criticised for “acting as propaganda tools of the government”, also tore up the austerity circular. Nine ministries spent 222.3 million TL on representation and promotion in the first half of 2025.
Under AKP rule, many ministries, including executive ones, were used as “propaganda tools of the government”. The cabinet repeatedly went out to campaign for AKP during election periods, and ministers visited AKP provincial organisations during city trips.
Ministries criticised for being “propaganda tools” also rendered the current Austerity Measures Circular meaningless. BirGün examined the representation and promotion spending of nine critical ministries in the first half of 2025. In six months, these ministries spent over 220 million TL.
THE PEOPLE’S MILLIONS
In January–June 2025, the nine ministries spent a total of 222,376,000 TL on representation and promotion. The highest spending was by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which recorded 201,309,000 TL in the first half of the year.
The Ministry of Family and Social Services ranked second with 7,771,000 TL in six-month spending. The Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources followed with 2,414,000 TL, according to financial reports.
RECORD SPENDING
Representation and promotion spending by the ministries in the first half of 2025 was as follows:
- Ministry of Justice: 1,862,000 TL
- Ministry of Family and Social Services: 7,771,000 TL
- Ministry of Labour and Social Security: 2,319,000 TL
- Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry: 1,537,000 TL
- Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources: 2,414,000 TL
FOREIGN AFFAIRS AT THE TOP
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs: 201,309,000 TL
- Ministry of Health: 1,736,000 TL
- Ministry of Industry and Technology: 2,211,000 TL
- Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure: 1,217,000 TL
Note: This article is translated from the original article titled Çözüm yok ama harcama çok, published in BirGün newspaper on August 19, 2025.
