Recently, we were talking with Mr. Ahmet Erbaş, Member of Parliament for Kütahya and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of University of Mediterranean Karpasia.
When asked, “Professor İsmet, which institution employs the most young people in this country?” I replied, “Definitely the government.” The answer was quite obvious, actually; President Ahmet asked the question deliberately.
Nearly 75% of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus’ annual budget goes toward paying civil servant salaries. Add in pensions, and you’re looking at 90%. With the remaining 10% of the budget, what infrastructure will you develop? Electricity, water, roads, schools…
For this reason, it is impossible to do it with a 10% budget. Therefore, budgets are planned in such a way that they will run a deficit. In our tourism and hospitality sector, can we find even the most basic staff, such as waiters, housekeeping staff, kitchen staff, cooks, or even receptionists? Absolutely not. Let’s take it a step further: In Northern Cyprus, how many Turkish Cypriots are there who are painters, shoe repairers, tailors, construction workers, blacksmiths, plumbers, tire repairers, machinists, bakers, nurses, caregivers, pastry chefs, bakers… I said we are decreasing.
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