Ünal Erkan, a former national police chief who later served as regional governor of the south-east’s state of emergency (OHAL) zone and briefly as a state minister, has died, Turkish media reported on Thursday.
Erkan died in the hospital where he had been receiving treatment for some time, according to TGRT Haber, Milli Gazete and Korkusuz. The reports did not give a cause of death. He was born in Erzurum in 1942, TGRT Haber and Milli Gazete said.
His funeral prayer will be held after the midday prayer on Friday, 30 October, at the Ahmet Hamdi Akseki Mosque in Ankara, and he will be buried at Gölbaşı Cemetery in the capital, the reports said.
Police chief and ‘super governor’
A graduate of the Police Academy, Erkan served as police chief in Ankara and Istanbul, according to the reports. Edirne Son Haber reported that he was governor of Edirne province from August 1988 until 1991.
He was Director General of Security, the head of Türkiye’s national police, from July 1991 to February 1992, TGRT Haber and Korkusuz reported. He then became governor of the State of Emergency Region (OHAL) based in Diyarbakır, succeeding Necati Çetinkaya. The broad powers of the post earned him the nickname "super governor" (Süper Vali), Milli Gazete and Korkusuz noted.
Parliament and cabinet
Erkan entered politics with the True Path Party (DYP) and was elected member of parliament for Ankara in the 20th parliamentary term, according to the reports. He served as a state minister in the 53rd government led by Prime Minister Mesut Yılmaz from 6 March to 28 June 1996, Milli Gazete and Korkusuz reported.
He later joined the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and sat on its Central Executive Board until resigning in 2007, TGRT Haber and Korkusuz said.
Sources
- Eski Devlet Bakanı Ünal Erkan hayatını kaybetti (TGRT Haber)
- OHAL dönemi valisiydi: Eski bakan Ünal Erkan hayatını kaybetti (Korkusuz)
- Eski Devlet Bakanı Ünal Erkan hayatını kaybetti! Cenaze programı belli oldu (Milli Gazete)
- Edirne’nin eski valisi Ünal Erkan hayatını kaybetti (Edirne Son Haber)
Photo: ekrem osmanoglu / CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
