Turkey’s Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu was slapped with a speeding ticket after posting a video of himself driving at 225 km/h on a highway - almost double the legal limit. On Sunday, Uraloglu shared the clip of his drive on the Ankara-Nigde highway. Set to folk music and excerpts of a speech by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan praising the government’s infrastructure, the video showed the minister’s speedometer soaring as his car sped past others in the fast lane.
The video quickly went viral, triggering a public outcry. Many pointed out that the minister was driving at 225 km/h - nearly twice the legal limit - and questioned the example set by a top government official. The video also caught the attention of traffic police, who later fined him 9,267 lira ($280) for breaking the speed limit about 50 km outside the capital, Ankara, as per a Reuters report.
Transport minister apologises
Uraloglu posted a follow-up statement on X along with an image of the traffic ticket he received. In the post, he admitted that had briefly exceeded the speed limit without realising it, and apologised to the nation for his mistake.
{{/usCountry}}Uraloglu posted a follow-up statement on X along with an image of the traffic ticket he received. In the post, he admitted that had briefly exceeded the speed limit without realising it, and apologised to the nation for his mistake.
{{/usCountry}}“I took the wheel to check the latest status of the Ankara - Nigde Highway. During this time, I unintentionally exceeded the speed limit for a short period. With the related video, I have essentially reported myself,” he wrote.
“Adhering to speed limits is mandatory for everyone. The necessary penalty has been imposed by our Highway Gendarmerie. I would like to inform the public that I will be much more careful from now on,” the minister added.
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Abdulkadir Uraloglu faces criticism
However, the apology did little to calm criticism. One X user questioned whether no one on the minister’s team had warned him that posting a video of a traffic violation could be problematic. “Dear Minister, I am genuinely curious. Is there not even a single person in your team who would say, ‘Dear Minister, it appears you exceeded the speed limit in this video; sharing it could cause problems,’ or who could detect this violation? If there isn’t, I think that’s a bigger issue than you violating the speed limit,” the user wrote.
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Another called on him to resign, writing, “If someone who sets the rules on the highway breaks the rule, they should resign immediately. I invite you to an honorable resignation. Moreover, you did not report yourself; you had a penalty issued to yourself due to the reactions. I hope you do not impose sanctions on the personnel you had write the penalty.”