Elazığ CCI President of the Assembly Sedat Karataş Responded to Allegations Regarding the Election Process

Elazığ CCI President of the Assembly Sedat Karataş Responded to Allegations Regarding the Election Process

Sedat Karataş, President of the Assembly of the Elazığ Chamber of Commerce and Industry, made a statement in response to the unfounded allegations and assessments made by some candidates in recent days regarding the election process, whose exact date and calendar have not yet been announced by TOBB; allegations aimed at misleading the public, far removed from the election process and legislation as a whole, and built on incomplete information and misinformation.

Stating that the professional groups and election preparation process carried out at the Elazığ Chamber of Commerce and Industry were not conducted on the basis of personal initiative and opinion, President of the Assembly Karataş pointed out that the practice was carried out within the framework of the Law No. 5174 on the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye, the relevant regulations, and the principles of the election calendar and implementing regulation administered by TOBB.

The Number of Professional Groups Has Been Increased to 19 in Order to Strengthen Representation

Stating that the work on professional groups was initiated by Elazığ CCI with the new NACE Rev.2.1 alignment process and that, for six months, the activity codes and sectoral distribution of the members were assessed with great care by our Professional Committees, Elazığ CCI President of the Assembly Sedat Karataş expressed the following views in his statement:

“As a result of this work, by the decision of the Elazığ Chamber of Commerce and Industry Assembly dated 30 March 2026, the number of professional groups was increased from 14 to 19 in order to represent the economic structure of our province more accurately.

Subsequently, official notifications were sent to all our members via PTT; the professional group to which they belong, their NACE activity code and their legal right to object to these records were communicated clearly and understandably.

Furthermore, since 2012 our members have been able to view their own records through the system on TOBB’s electronic infrastructure, which is accessible to our members.

Despite these facts and despite the fact that all our members follow these processes, the allegations voiced in public that ‘groups are being hidden, members are not being informed or there is a lack of transparency’ have no basis in truth, and such statements are also found meaningless and unnecessary by our members.”

 “The Election Process Is Conducted in Accordance with the Procedures and Principles Applied in All Chambers and Commodity Exchanges”

Stating that the preparation, posting and announcement of election lists are regulated in detail by the relevant laws and regulations, President Karataş said, “The Elazığ Chamber of Commerce and Industry also conducts this process within the framework of the common procedures applied in all chambers and commodity exchanges in Türkiye.

In an election process whose calendar has not yet been announced, if the patience to wait for the announcements to be made by TOBB is shown, the process will be carried out within its own natural calendar.

Moreover, keeping the database closed to access during the period in which the work on restructuring the Professional Groups and TOBB’s updating work were ongoing was implemented in order to prevent our members from encountering records that had not yet been completed and were still being updated, to avoid any misinterpretation of incomplete or temporary information, and to ensure that all our members access the final, verified data simultaneously.

Following the completion of the notification process carried out by PTT, the joint TOBB-Ministry of Trade member lists database, created within the framework of the relevant legislation, will be made available on our Chamber’s official website on Friday, 24.07.2026.

Unnecessary statements or attempts to shape public opinion, ostensibly aimed at speeding up the process and casting suspicion on our Chamber, will not change the calendar prescribed by the legislation; moreover, they reveal that the circles frequently voicing these allegations do not know the legislation and make no effort to learn it.

Besides, the right of our members to object regarding professional groups is legally open. This matter was clearly stated in the notifications sent by our Chamber to our members, and the necessary information was provided in full so that all our members can exercise their legal rights.

Despite this legal process and these facts, creating misinformation in public by ignoring the clear provisions of the election legislation not only has no result other than misleading our members, but also reveals that those making the allegations are acting without regard to the legislation and regulations of the institution they aspire to lead.

Such rhetoric, instead of contributing to the healthy functioning of the election process, amounts to nothing more than producing polemics; these are futile attempts that benefit neither our Chamber nor the Elazığ business community.”

The Chamber’s Corporate Identity and Reputation Cannot Be Sacrificed to Election Excitement

Stating that the Elazığ Chamber of Commerce and Industry is one of the most deep-rooted and reputable institutions of our city, and that statements targeting the legal personality of our institution and aimed at undermining public trust for the sake of election excitement and ambition harm not only Elazığ CCI but also Elazığ's investment environment, commercial reputation and common future, Elazığ CCI President of the Assembly Sedat Karataş continued his statement as follows:

 “Statements aimed at casting a shadow on the impartiality and reputation of our institution for the sake of election excitement and ambition harm not only our Chamber but also Elazığ’s investment climate, its business community and its institutional reputation.

The current administration of our Chamber took office in the previous election with the strong support of our members, with one of the largest vote margins in the history of the Elazığ Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In the past election, too, the process was conducted within the framework of the same legislation, and no allegations arose that any candidate had privileged information or was denied information.  Our Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mr. İdris Alan, also took part in the election under the legal conditions clearly set out in the current election legislation and regulations and was elected to the office of Chairman of the Board of Directors of Elazığ CCI by the will of our members and by a clear margin.

Therefore, the allegations put forward today that ‘information is being withheld’ or ‘there is a lack of transparency’ are incompatible with the truth and are merely an effort to create polemics in order to cast a shadow over the election process and to gain attention.”

“Instead of Debating the Process, Importance Should Be Given to Projects and Field Work”

Stating that the election process will gain meaning and value not through issues based on unnecessary and groundless debate of legal procedures whose framework has been set and which have become established practice through regulations, but through discussion of new and original projects to be offered to members, field work, proposed solutions and a vision for the future of Elazığ, President Karataş said:

“We have all witnessed that, although many ambitious promises were announced in past election periods, a significant portion of them could not be implemented. As Elazığ CCI, with all our units and bodies, we will continue, as we have done until today, to act within the legal framework drawn by the law and to conduct the election process in a transparent, fair and lawful manner.  Although the entire legal framework concerning the process and the procedures and principles applied are very clear, and although our Chamber has made repeated statements on this matter, from today onwards there will be no need whatsoever to respond to similar statements and declarations.

Our aim, rather than wasting time responding to unfounded and baseless allegations, is for the elections to be held and concluded in a dignified manner on a legal basis, with realistic discourse and on the basis of projects, and to contribute to the economy of our province.”