A lower court ordered the Turkstat to submit all information and documentation used in its inflation calculations, the pro-opposition portal Cumhuriyet reported. A former prosecutor had filed a lawsuit with the courts to force Turkstat to disclose the raw price data it uses in its calculation of CPI and PPI.
This directive came amid growing concerns over the accuracy of official inflation figures, which have significant implications for retirees and employees across Turkey.
The Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) faces significant criticism and legal challenges following allegations of manipulating inflation data, which may have resulted in lower salary increases for millions of pensioners and public employees.
The controversy centers around Turkstat’s “inflation basket” and the transparency of its data. For the past two years, TurkStat has not disclosed the individual prices of items used to calculate inflation, defying court rulings that mandated such disclosures. Critics argue that the institution underreports inflation figures to enable the government to minimize pension and wage adjustments, which are indexed to these figures.
In July, two parties have pressed the charge of “concealing data and abusing public duty” against the statistical authority. In its petition to the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, DEM Party stated, “The rates of increases in civil servant and pensioner salaries are determined based on the inflation rates announced by TurkStat. With the inflation data released in June, both the rate of rent increases and the six-month inflation difference reflected in the salaries of civil servants and pensioners were determined accordingly.
“Turkstat’s data negatively impacts the lives of millions of people who live by their labor. By publishing data that causes millions of people to become poorer under inflation conditions, in order not to trouble the political power, TurkStat is clearly committing a crime.
“The unpublished item-level prices and misleadingly determined so-called inflation figures also constitute the crime of openly spreading misleading information to the public. The institution’s president and executives are abusing their duties and committing a crime by openly spreading misleading information to the public.”
That and another lawsuit filed by labor union federation were halted by the Ministry of Justice, which has the power to wet legal action against civil servants and government agencies.
The current lawsuit filed by Retired judge Seyfettin Çilesiz, a former member of the Supreme Court of Appeals’ 7th Criminal Chamber, claims that Turkstat’s inflation data do not reflect the actual cost increases in everyday expenses such as food and housing. Çilesiz’s attorney, Ali Erdem Gündoğan, demands that TurkStat revise its inflation calculations for the period from January 1 to June 30, 2024. Gündoğan stated that if TurkStat does not respond within 30 days, they will take the matter to an administrative court.
Alleging that the agency’s reported low inflation rates have led to inadequate pension adjustments, former judge says he is unable to afford basic living expenses.
The move by Çilesiz highlights a broader discontent among Turkish citizens about the accuracy of official inflation data. TurkStat has been criticized for understating inflation rates, which affects wage and pension adjustments. According to TurkStat, inflation was over 71 percent in June, whereas a group of independent economists reported it as above 113 percent.
The discrepancy has significant implications for pensioners and salaried workers. If inflation is underreported, cost-of-living adjustments lag behind actual price increases, eroding purchasing power.
A recent survey by MetroPOLL Research found that 81.3 percent of respondents believe the economy is poorly managed, with significant portions of the people who voted for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its ally, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) also expressing dissatisfaction.
On Thursday, the court accepted to deliberate on the Cilesiz petition and ordered Turkstat to deliver all raw price data for examination.
It is not certain that Turkstat will comply, because: Doing so would mean disclosing detailed data which the agency has withheld from the public jealously. Whether hiding data is related to a concerted effort to falsify inflation figures is open to debate. Much is at stake here: Any court-ordered revisions to past CPI data (likely in the direction of higher figures) will mean that turn-of-the year wage-salary-pension hikes will be adjusted upwards. Worse, numerous class action lawsuits can be filed by labor unions and retiree associations to claim back pay held up because of lower-than-actual inflation figures.
Assuming Turkstat will defy the order, the court will possibly issue an injunction on new data releases, a remedy sought by the plaintiff. At the second stage, either the Ministry of Justice will halt the proceedings, or Turkstat will appeal to a higher court, which under the pressure from the administration will reverse the injunction. The appeals court may quash the case, decide to deliberate on it, or kick it down to the court of first instance. In any case, it will take months, if not years for this case to be concluded.
Follow our English language YouTube videos @ REAL TURKEY: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKpFJB4GFiNkhmpVZQ_d9Rg
And content at Twitter: @AtillaEng
Facebook: Real Turkey Channel: https://www.facebook.com/realturkeychannel/