Denktaş: All Those Responsible Must Be Held Accountable

Denktaş said there had been serious failures of oversight and management leading up to the disaster, criticising the decision to allow a damaged vessel to operate.

According to a statement from TAM Party, Denktaş was a live guest on Mustafa Alkan’s Er Meydanı programme on Genç TV.

Denktaş said the accident could not be reduced to a captain’s error or a single incident.

“Everything we have learned from the details, the vessel’s previous images and the statements of survivors shows that there was a chain of negligence. Those responsible at every link in this chain must be held accountable,” he said.

Denktaş stressed that the disaster was not simply the result of a captain’s mistake, but the consequence of a chain of negligence.

He alleged that the vessel had previously been damaged and had been repaired by unauthorised individuals in an effort to reduce costs, even claiming that one allegation suggested a car body repairer had carried out the work.

Denktaş said 260 people had been put at risk to keep repair costs down. He argued that those who carried out the repairs, those who approved the vessel as fit for service, the port authority, the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, and all officials involved in the process bore responsibility.

“Those Responsible at Every Link of the Chain Must Be Identified One by One”

Denktaş also said a captain had been employed with a captain’s licence obtained from Honduras whose equivalency was unclear.

“Those responsible at every link of the chain must be identified one by one,” he said.

“The vessel was already damaged. Who repaired it? Was it repaired properly? Who approved it as fit for service after the repairs? What is the status of the captain’s licence? Who and on what basis determined that the vessel was fit to sail? How did the port master give permission for the vessel to depart that day? We will not let this go until we get answers to all these questions and those responsible are held accountable.”

Denktaş also recalled that there was a coastal safety company operating under the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, questioning why the company had not been mentioned during the process and what exactly it was responsible for.

“We Have Experienced a Collective Trauma. We Will Not Forget”

Denktaş also criticised airlines for raising ticket prices to between TL20,000 and TL25,000 as families of the victims attempted to reach the island during the crisis, describing the practice as “opportunism, theft and profiteering.”

He argued that government officials had failed to show the courage to impose sanctions on the companies concerned or revoke their flight permits.

“The government in charge is responsible in this environment. Everyone involved in the process, from the vessel’s entry into the island until it set sail, bears responsibility. We have experienced a collective trauma. This people will not forget. The lives of 260 people were put at risk simply to keep repair costs down. If this disaster happened in this country, those responsible at every link of the chain must be identified one by one,” he said.

Denktaş said his party had begun providing legal and psychological support to affected citizens, adding that volunteer lawyers and psychologists who are party members were assisting victims in need.

He said citizens could contact the party’s support line at 0548 895 08 26.

Denktaş also called for all necessary safety standards in maritime transportation to be implemented immediately to prevent similar tragedies from occurring again.