AKP municipality will spend 1 million liras to turn singer İbrahim Tatlıses' birth house into museum

Duvar English

The municipality of Haliliye district in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa, which is run by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), will spend 1 million liras to turn the house where famous Turkish singer İbrahim Tatlıses was born into a museum, the daily BirGün reported.

The municipality on Feb. 21 held a tender with the title "İbrahim Tatlıses Museum Construction.” Only four companies were able to bid for the tender which was won a firmed owned by Ömer Ferhat Tavaş, a businessman with close ties to the AKP.

A contract worth one million liras was signed between the Haliliye Municipality and Tavaş's firm on March 14. Within the scope of the project, the house where Tatlıses was born will be turned into a museum in 90 days.

Tatlıses had previously said that his birth house would be restored and then opened to tourism. “I want people to see the cave where I was born and grew up because they don't know. God let me and I became famous and rich," he had said. 

Meanwhile, AKP-run Şanlıurfa Municipality's Press and Public Relations Directorate released a promotional video on YouTube with regards to the project, saying that the museum aims to "honor" Tatlıses' memory and "pass it on to the future generations." 

Tatlıses frequently made headlines in the past for abusing his partners. He even went as far as to say that women should accept being beaten. 

"I respect women, but I also beat them," he had said. "A woman should accept being beaten."