The Turkish government came under fresh pressure over its response to the bushfires that ravaged the country for almost two weeks after it emerged the forestry agency spent more than ten times its firefighting outlay on basketball.
The General Directorate of Forestry, or OGM, spent 40 million Turkish lira ($4.6 million) on Ormanspor men’s and women’s basketball teams last season, the agency’s financial records show.
It was revealed last week that OGM spent only 3.4 million lira in the first six months of this year on projects and equipment for preventing and combating forest fires, despite an allocated 193 million lira budget for such measures.
As Turkey battled its worst bushfires over the past two weeks, authorities were criticised for a lack of preparation in regions regularly hit by seasonal fire. Eight people have been killed and thousands of homes and businesses destroyed as the flames swept across the south-west coast and further inland.
Heavy rains helped to douse the flames over the weekend, with all the fires under control except for three blazes in the south-west, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Bekir Pakdemirli said on Monday.
“The OGM has an annual allowance of more than 4 billion lira and only 190 million lira of this has been allocated to fight the fires, of which only 3 million lira has been used,” said Murat Emir, an MP for the opposition Republic People’s Party, who submitted a written question to Mr Pakdemirli.
“However, when we look at the budget allocated to Ormanspor, we see that almost 40 million lira was spent. This budget is almost four times the size of that of Besiktas, who played in the semi-finals of the basketball league.”
Turkey has a history of public bodies – from municipal authorities to utility companies – funding sports clubs that play in the professional leagues.
Ankara-based Ormanspor – the name translates as Forest Sport – fields basketball sides in the men’s and women’s leagues. The women’s team finished the season in fourth place in May while the men were relegated from the top flight after coming last with only seven wins in 30 matches.
Mr Emir questioned some of the spending at the club and said it had not disclosed the amount spent on players’ wages.
He highlighted a director’s 38-year-old son who has been on Ormanspor’s books for 10 years and played for only a few minutes in 16 games last season. He also claimed a 42-year-old women’s team player was a friend of Mr Pakdemirli’s wife.
“The club does not disclose contract fees for players,” he said. “Why doesn’t a publicly funded club disclose contract fees for players?
“The OGM budget was planned as though there weren’t going to be any fires.”
Sports journalist Alp Ulagay said the "true figures" of spending lacked transparency. "In basketball and volleyball, particularly in clubs owned by public bodies, it’s very difficult to follow the spending and management,” he said.
The Agriculture and Forestry Ministry, which oversees the OGM, did not respond to a request for comment.
The OGM posted a statement on Twitter, later deleted the tweet, which described the suggestions as “far from reality” and claimed the “total budget for amateur teams that we support throughout Turkey through our two Super League [basketball] teams and regional directorates is 15 million lira”.
Referring to earlier revelations that the OGM report showed a nominal amount of 1,000 lira had been allocated towards the purchase of 26 helicopters, the directorate said the “trace allowance” was “intended to show that the project is still an ongoing project”.
The statement said a “total budget” of 1.5 billion lira for aircraft and land vehicles in 2021 and would be “spent by the end of the year”.
“What’s the source of the 1.5 billion lira?” Mr Emir said. “Will you spend it after the forests are burnt to the ground?”
Eyasses squad
Charlie Preston (captain) – goal shooter/ goalkeeper (Dubai College)
Arushi Holt (vice-captain) – wing defence / centre (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Olivia Petricola (vice-captain) – centre / wing attack (Dubai English Speaking College)
Isabel Affley – goalkeeper / goal defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Jemma Eley – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Alana Farrell-Morton – centre / wing / defence / wing attack (Nord Anglia International School)
Molly Fuller – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Caitlin Gowdy – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Noorulain Hussain – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai College)
Zahra Hussain-Gillani – goal defence / goalkeeper (British School Al Khubairat)
Claire Janssen – goal shooter / goal attack (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Eliza Petricola – wing attack / centre (Dubai English Speaking College)
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
EGYPT SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Ahmed El Shennawy, Mohamed El Shennawy, Mohamed Abou-Gabal, Mahmoud Abdel Rehem "Genesh"
Defenders: Ahmed Elmohamady, Ahmed Hegazi, Omar Gaber, Ali Gazal, Ayman Ahsraf, Mahmoud Hamdy, Baher Elmohamady, Ahmed Ayman Mansour, Mahmoud Alaa, Ahmed Abou-Elfotouh
Midfielders: Walid Soliman, Abdallah El Said, Mohamed Elneny, Tarek Hamed, Mahmoud “Trezeguet” Hassan, Amr Warda, Nabil Emad
Forwards: Ahmed Ali, Mohamed Salah, Marwan Mohsen, Ahmed "Kouka" Hassan.
Honeymoonish
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'Skin'
Dir: Guy Nattiv
Starring: Jamie Bell, Danielle McDonald, Bill Camp, Vera Farmiga
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
NEW ARRIVALS
Benjamin Mendy (Monaco) - £51.75m (Dh247.94m)
Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur) - £45.9m
Bernardo Silva (Monaco) - £45m
Ederson Moraes (Benfica) - £36m
Danilo (Real Madrid) - £27m
Douglas Luiz (Vasco de Gama) - £10.8m
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
SPECS
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Company%20profile
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Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20NOTHING%20PHONE%20(2a)
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
ALRAWABI%20SCHOOL%20FOR%20GIRLS
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The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Ukraine
Capital: Kiev
Population: 44.13 million
Armed conflict in Donbass
Russia-backed fighters control territory
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
The specs
Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Power: 575bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: Dh554,000
On sale: now
The%20BaaS%20ecosystem
%3Cp%3EThe%20BaaS%20value%20chain%20consists%20of%20four%20key%20players%3A%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsumers%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20End-users%20of%20the%20financial%20product%20delivered%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDistributors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Also%20known%20as%20embedders%2C%20these%20are%20the%20firms%20that%20embed%20baking%20services%20directly%20into%20their%20existing%20customer%20journeys%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEnablers%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Usually%20Big%20Tech%20or%20FinTech%20companies%20that%20help%20embed%20financial%20services%20into%20third-party%20platforms%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EProviders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Financial%20institutions%20holding%20a%20banking%20licence%20and%20offering%20regulated%20products%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
