"I repent investing in Iskenderun" businessman says

       Resit Bebek, whose satirical speech criticising bureaucracy at the Turkish Businessmen of the World conference was met with laughter and applause, repents ever investing in Iskenderun, his hometown.
       Bebek, who went to Germany 36 years ago for his education, later founded a six-company marketing network in Finland, where he settled down after marrying a native of the country. However, when Bebek attempted to invest in his hometown, not only did he lose all his money and his factory, but also found himself entangled in a series of legal cases.
       Bebek notes that his dream of investing in his native land, turned into a nightmare as soon as he refused the Iskenderun Municipal Governor's demand of a "present."
       "I built a factory in Iskenderun six years ago," Bebek said. "But I could not activate it. The Municipal Governor asked me for a $30.000 car. I refused. The Governor declined my application for a licence."
       Bebek's problems did not end there. First, a part of his DM 2 million factory was demolished. Then followed lawsuits. Bebek was sued when he announced that the Governor had demanded a bribe from him. "And now I've got all these lawsuits on my hands. So I don't use the word 'bribe' anymore, I call it 'present,'" Bebek said.
       Bebek has now moved part of the machinery he had in his factory in Iskenderun to Dortyol.
       Mete Arslan, Iskenderun's Municipal Governor, explained that he had asked for an ambulance for the city council, not a car for himself. "I sealed off his factory because it was not legal. It did not have the construction permits. I did not tear it down, there are court orders for it. All he wants to do is rip off his Finnish partners. He is an opportunist and a showman. I do not need his presents, I just asked for an ambulance," Arslan said.