TURKSTAT Statement from the International Statistical Institute

President of the Turkish Statistical Institute Sait Erdal DincerHe was dismissed by the decision of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, which was published on January 29. With the decision published in the Official Gazette, Erhan Çetinkaya, Deputy Chairman of the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK), was appointed to replace Dinçer. Today, this about job change A critical statement came from an international institution.

The International Statistical Institute (ISI) made important statements about the Turkish Statistical Institute in the statement it shared today. In the statement focusing on the dismissal of TurkStat President Sait Erdal Dinçer without any justification, No evidence of violation of professionalism is presented in the work of TurkStat. specified. The statement of the International Statistical Institute was as follows:

“The ISI’s Declaration of Professional Ethics and the UN’s Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics set clear professional and scientific standards for statistics to ensure reliable information for public discourse and to aid decision-making.

The International Statistical Institute ISI and the International Official Statistics Association IAOS have announced that Sait Erdal Dinçer was recently dismissed from the presidency of the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK), at a time when the country is facing high inflation rates. is deeply concerned. Appointment and dismissal, including the Presidency, within TURKSTAT recurring concerns about the transparency of proceduressignificantly undermines the credibility of the institution.

Regarding the violation of professionalism in the works of TÜİK with no evidence presented together, ISI and IAOS, as in other similar cases, should take a clear stance against what we see as political interference in the production of official statistics. We expect the Turkish authorities to provide assurance that TurkStat can provide objective statistics that fully meet international standards. This will be a means of restoring confidence in Turkey’s official statistics, which serve not only the government but also Turkish society in general, and which are respected by the international community, including financial markets, which are based on reliable statistics.”