EMEP MP İskender Bayhan declares the 2024 budget a document of collapse

Labour Party (EMEP) İstanbul MP İskender Bayhan took the floor during the budget talks in the General Assembly of the Parliament. Calling the 2024 budget "a document of the period of collapse", Bayhan said, "Those who collapse on the backs of the workers and labourers of this country will themselves collapse".

Bayhan started his speech by saying, "I specially greet the gas-guzzler-potter governor of Urfa, who stands at the head of the Urfa branch of the palace, and of course the barbecue representatives of the bourgeoisie," and addressed the workers and labourers from the rostrum.

Bayhan continued his speech as follows:

"In every country, whoever owns the state and power makes the budget. If the state is in the hands of capital, it means that it makes the budget. Therefore, the budget we have in our hands, the 2024 budget, is the budget of TÜSİAD, MÜSİAD, TOBB, TİSK, MESS [business institutions]; for this reason, its face is turned towards the exploiting classes, and its back to the working people. The main purpose of this budget is to protect and serve the interests of international capital, domestic and foreign monopolies and especially collaborative crony capitalists. 
In the 2024 budget, working people are crushed under indirect taxes, up to 70%, and they are expected to pay 1 trillion 200 billion liras [41.4 billion dollars] of income tax. The taxes that come out of the pockets of a handful of capitalists are put back into the other pockets by adding more [in the form of incentives]. 
However, if the one-man government were to collect these taxes, there would be no deficit in Turkey's 2024 budget or in the budgets to come in the next three years. In other words, if this budget had a shred of justice, millions living on minimum wage would not have to think about how to boil their pots at home every day; they would not have to think twice before they buy essentials or send their children to school with half-filled tummies in the morning; pensioners would not be unable to buy their blood pressure medication.
With only one third of the net earnings of capitalists in 2023, one year's wages of 17 million workers can be paid. Why can't you levy a wealth tax? One year's wages of 615 thousand minimum wage earners can be paid with just one year's cost of the palace, but the one-man administration does not do this. 
So, what does it do? When it comes to capital, it distributes generously but when it comes to workers, "There are no resources, may God give" it says. The share of the happy minority from the gross national product in this country is 50 percent, and the share of taxes paid by this 50 percent in the 2024 budget is 16 percent. 
This is the budget of the religious sects, congregations and the clergy class formed by them, which follows the path opened by the palace administration, which says, "I will run the country like a company, I will conduct merchant politics and I will be the chief architect of cheap labour ". All the capitalists of the world envy you. Do you know why they are jealous? Because they think "We cannot exploit workers and labourers as much as you do". This is budget that you give the minimum of wealth and earnings and the maximum of faith and prayer to the workers. 
So, how do they sell the heavy bill of exploitation and terror to us? [Treasury and Finance] Minister Şimşek says: "As our economy grows, our welfare will increase, and we will share that welfare even more fairly."
Just as a cypress tree does not grow in the shade of an oak tree, it is not possible for the system, this system, to increase the incomes of workers by increasing the coffers of the capitalists, it is a pipe dream. Whenever they say "growth", think of the misery of Mercedes workers and Ford workers who produce a car every 35 seconds. Whenever they say "growth", think of our fellow workers who burn to death, lose limbs and get injured in the production process; think of the banned strikes, the state forces that confronted AGROBAY and Özak workers. 
Those who say, "Do you know how much a bullet costs?" are saying to the workers of this country, "Make sacrifices, grit your teeth and be patient" with the propaganda of nationalism and localism. Those who said, "We are waging an economic War of Independence against foreign powers" are now travelling from country to country looking for foreign capital. 
They may talk about the "Great Century of Turkey" as much as they like but this budget documents the end of the journey that President Erdoğan calls in order of his "apprenticeship", "mastership" and "grand mastership". This budget is now a document of the period of collapse. Those who exploit the workers to the bone will collapse. Remember, palaces fall, reigns end; thrones and fortunes are swept aside…
We reject this budget that brings misery and disaster to the working people of this country and prosperity to the capitalists." (EVRENSEL DAILY)