Pursaklar Municipality Took Council Members to Egypt for 2.8 Million Lira

The AKP-led Ankara Pursaklar Municipality organized a trip to Egypt between October 20-25 within the scope of a 'professional development' program attended by 30 council members. The municipality signed a contract worth 2 million 866 thousand 500 lira with Erdoğmuş Tourism Transportation Industry and Trade Limited Company for the organization; the amount per person came to 95 thousand 550 lira.

The program, which lasted six days and five nights, started in Sharm El-Sheikh; the city had three nights of accommodation. Naama Bay, Ras Mohammed National Park, Old Market, and SOHO Square were visited. The program included the Pyramids and the Great Sphinx in Cairo, and swimming took place in Sharm El-Sheikh.

Although the organization's specifications included the statement 'the program is not organized for personal vacation or tourism purposes,' only two hours were allocated to the professional development seminar throughout the entire six-day program. The seminar was stated to cover topics including the protection of cultural heritage, the role of local administrations in tourism and city promotion, and local development. The specifications also noted that flights would be in economy class and luxury accommodation would be excluded from scope.