Neoliberal populist politics and rising construction in Turkey: TOKİ in the 2000s

This study examines the Mass Housing Administration (TOKİ), the representative of the construction and housing sector, which has become a determining factor in Turkey's economic and political structuring in the 2000s, within the framework of its relationship with the neoliberal populist politics of the Justice and Development Party (JDP) government. The main claim of the thesis is that TOKİ, a key public instituiton in the construction and housing sector, is a political device where the neoliberal authoritarian populist policies implemented under the JDP government are revealed. Despite its conceptual ambiguity, populism has a flexibility that transcends time and space. At the same time, it is in harmony with different economic and political structures. At this point, the instrumental nature of populism comes to the fore. Today, the transformation of populism into neoliberal populism as a result of its alliance with neoliberalism is a reflection of the instrumentality of populism. In this respect, populism is considered as a political strategy in this study. This requires taking into consideration the political methods and tools that the populist leader uses to gain and remain in power. With the 2008 Financial Crisis, the state apparatus that became authoritarian as a result of the transformation of neoliberalism had repercussions in many areas. In this context, urban politics has also undergone a significant transformation on the axis of neoliberal authoritarianism. In this period, increasing centralization and market-oriented re-institutionalization due to the neoliberal authoritarian state formation were also decisive for the housing sector. As a result of neoliberal active state formation, TOKİ has become a market maker and regulator in the housing sector. With the effect of intense commodification in housing and the construction finance complex, the housing sector has become much more attractive for capital in these years. As a reflection of this situation, high rent transfers have been made to some Islamic conservative capital groups, known for their closeness to the AKP government, through tenders and partnerships through TOKİ. The profit mechanism that emerged in this process operated not only through housing, but also through mega projects, which were made a matter of national pride by the government at every opportunity. During this period, especially megacities, down to their remotest corners were not only turned into construction sites and areas for profit, but also slum areas were brought back to the market through urban transformation practices implemented with the changes made in the legislation. This situation, in addition to the commodification of housing, has also brought about capital accumulation based on dispossession. On the other hand, through the urban transformation projects carried out by TOKİ, the poor segments of the society are included in the financial system by borrowing for many years in order to own a house and brought into the system by being exposed to harsh working conditions. This reflects a political understanding that covers up social contradictions, ignores class inequalities, and strives to portray society in harmony. In addition to all these, another reflection of the neoliberal authoritarian understanding of politics revealed in TOKİ is the mobilization of the masses through Islamic conservative values. This includes the presentation of a lifestyle based on Islamic conservative principles through the space setup, institutional architectural understanding and symbols in the mass building built by TOKİ, and a reckoning with Kemalism with reference to the Ottomans through this lifestyle.