Turkiye transport minister gets speeding fine over social media post

Türkiye Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloglu addresses the audience during a signing ceremony in Istanbul (FILE/REUTERS)

• On Sunday evening, Abdulkadir Uraloglu posted a video of himself on X driving along a highway near the capital Ankara listening to folk songs and clips of speeches by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan

ISTANBUL: Turkiye’s transport minister has been slapped with a speeding fine after posting a video of himself racing down a highway with the hashtag #TurkiyeAccelerates.
On Sunday evening, Abdulkadir Uraloglu posted a video of himself on X driving along a highway near the capital Ankara listening to folk songs and clips of speeches by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
In several separate shots that inadvertently show the speedometer, he can be seen clocking up speeds of between 190 and 225 kilometers per hour (118 to 140 miles per hour).
The speed limit on that highway in Turkiye is 140 kph (85 mph).
Several hours later, Uraloglu reposted the footage, admitting he had been fined for breaking the speed limit, saying that in posting the video he had effectively dropped himself in it.
“I took to the wheel to check the Ankara-Nigde highway and unintentionally exceeded the speed limit for a short period. With the video I effectively denounced myself,” he wrote.
The penalty notice, a copy of which he posted, showed he had been driving at 225 kph and slapped with a fine of 9,267 Tirkish Lira ($225).
“I will be much more careful from now on,” he wrote. “Sticking to the speed limited is mandatory for everyone.”