We’ve borrowed our headline “The Name of Sarıgül” from “The Name of the Rose,” the best-selling novel by Italian writer Umberto Eco.
The novel has little resemblance to our subject, the politician Mustafa Sarıgül, apart from a surname that means yellow rose.
WHO IS SARIGÜL?
Mustafa Sarıgül is 70. He has been in politics since a very young age. He currently represents Erzincan, his birthplace, in parliament. He had served as a lawmaker before, as a young man. He also spent 15 years as mayor of Şişli, one of Istanbul’s most important districts. What else? He ran for mayor of Istanbul, too, but he didn’t win. He was always in left-wing, social democratic parties. At some point, he wanted to lead a party himself. His first move was to challenge Deniz Baykal, then the CHP’s chair. He ran against Baykal and, although he lost, won a substantial share of the vote.
It was in this period that Mustafa Sarıgül’s name became linked to money and real-estate profiteering. Indeed, Baykal’s words targeting Sarıgül during that contest resonate again today: “Dirty money will not rule the CHP. Whoever becomes CHP chair must not have tried to buy the party.”
Sarıgül never gave up his dream of leading a party. He resigned from the CHP and founded the Türkiye Değişim Party (Turkey Change Party). But when that party failed to grow, he accepted an offer from the CHP. He dissolved his party and returned to parliament in the 2023 election. When the CHP split, he chose the Yeni Party and remains in its ranks.
THE MONEY QUESTION
Following a criminal complaint by two German citizens, Mustafa Sarıgül now faces accusations of “money laundering and illicitly transferring large sums abroad.” And not just him: Almost his entire family faces the same accusations. His former wife, Aylin Kotil, and his sons, Emir and Ömer Sarıgül, are currently in pretrial detention. Mustafa Sarıgül remains free thanks to his parliamentary immunity. It appears that, had he not been a member of parliament, he too would now be behind bars. A dossier seeking to lift his immunity has been prepared.
Sarıgül’s name is always mentioned in connection with financial dealings. The most prominent accusation was that, while mayor of Şişli, he transferred vast plots of land to the Sarıgül Foundation, established in his name. Or, more precisely, there was much talk about these matters, but no outcome in court.
THE GARAGE GANG
Early in his parliamentary career, Sarıgül also made headlines in connection with the “Garage Operation.” This was within the SHP, formed in place of the CHP after it was shut down in the Sept. 12 military coup. According to news reports from the time, Mustafa Sarıgül and his associates were “uncomfortable with the leftists, Alevis and Kurds” within the party and held meetings in a garage owned by Sarıgül.
AN UNUSUAL POLITICIAN
Although his name inspires little trust among broad sections of the public, Sarıgül is an unusual politician. As mayor, he knows how to connect with different segments of society. When his celebrity began to fade, he opened a TikTok account and posted videos to reach a new generation unfamiliar with him. But one fact remains: Even within his own party, few are willing to vouch for him without reservation.
