Sadi...

As they say, it was "a day left over from summer"; that is exactly what Friday, January 10, was like. We are in Ulucak, Kemalpaşa, İzmir. I left the coat I had brought in case it was cold in the car. Yet, from what I heard on the news, the weather in Erzincan was quite cold. Thermometers were showing minus 15 degrees. Even the famous Üzümlü waterfalls had frozen over. On the other side of the world, California is burning. This firmament knows very well what it is doing. Anyway! Let's not get into that side of things. 

What does Göcek have to do with Ulucak? If you ask, "What are you doing there?" I wanted to share with you an opening that made me very happy and impressed me. When I received the message that CHP Chairman Özgür Özel would attend the opening of an Anatolian High School, I went to Kemalpaşa with journalist Buğra Kızılkara. (By the way, I congratulate all our journalists on 'Working Journalists Day'). I am glad I went. Behind the olive groves in Ulucak, a brand new, modern Anatolian High School has been built on an area of approximately 10 decares, where at least 800 students can receive education. It was decorated with flags and balloons. What I heard during the opening ceremony made me very happy. My admiration for the Mayor of Kemalpaşa and his family has grown. 

They had a high school built in the name of their son, Hasan Türkmen, whom they lost at the age of 30 in a traffic accident. Hasan Türkmen Anatolian High School. Hasan Türkmen had successfully completed all stages of his education in England and returned to his country. 

He became a productive mechanical engineer and businessman. He completed his military service at Anıtkabir in Ankara. Upon his discharge, his commanders gifted him the Ay-Yıldızlı (Crescent-Star) flag that had flown at Anıtkabir for 26 days due to his outstanding achievements. That flag is now flying in front of the high school. 

In his speech at the ceremony, Özgür Özel said, "one out of every four educated students goes abroad, and even more want to go."

He stated that "this government, which has been managing our country for 22 years, has stifled the hopes of our youth." He underlined that this needs to be corrected. He addressed the students going abroad with an example. "In the founding years of the Republic, in the years when the Treaty of Lausanne was signed, we were a proud but poor country. There were very few qualified people. The number of literate people could be counted on one's fingers. Sadi was one of the 11 students who passed the exams in which 250 students participated. When it was time to leave, Sadi, who boarded the train to Germany at Sirkeci Station, was indecisive between leaving and returning. In those days, there were no phones, no loudspeakers for announcements, nor the WhatsApp facilities of today. It was only possible to reach someone through a practice called train telegraphy. The train was about to depart. The postman/crier walked through the compartments calling 'Mahmut Sadi! Mahmut Sadi!' and reached Sadi, handing him a telegram. 

Sadi said, "...my mind was very confused. One foot was on the train, the other on the ground. Will they forget me there? Will they send money? Just as I was about to decide not to go, I opened the telegram I was given, and it read exactly: 'I am sending you as sparks; you must return as the fire of the Republic. Signed – Mustafa Kemal.' When I read it, I felt extraordinarily ashamed of what I had been thinking. I said, 'Now, come and don't go, go and don't work, return and don't give your life for this country.' Think about it, in 1923, among so much work, can one not give their life for this country under the leadership of a leader who could sense where, when, and what 11 students were feeling and send a telegram accordingly? I was very successful. I returned to my country as a flame of the Republic. First, I founded the Istanbul University Institute of General and Human Physiology. I became the chair of the department. Later, I served as the prime minister of my country. Who am I? I am just a scientist created by a two-line telegram. Ord. Prof. Dr. M. Sadi Irmak." 

Özgür Özel said, "Dear young people, you too will study in this beautiful high school, grow up as flames of the Republic, and take your place in the development of our country! I am addressing you, friends who will grow up in this school. For God's sake, do not lose hope, do not pack your suitcases in your minds, do not say, 'I want to go abroad and stay there.' This country was saved by paying great prices. Then, it was brought to these days by Sadis who completed their education with Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's telegram and returned to their country to illuminate it. You will also illuminate the second century of the Republic." 

The Türkmen family had also previously built a middle school for their mother and father, Ayşe and Hasan Türkmen. Our benevolent and hardworking Mayor Mehmet Türkmen also provides scholarships to 175 students. I offer my heartfelt congratulations to Mehmet Türkmen, who has signed off on 11 nurseries, a city restaurant, a soup kitchen, recreational areas, and many more investments. 

How lucky is Nif, which was given the name of Kemal Paşa, whom they hosted one day before the liberation of İzmir, to have the patriotic and benevolent Mehmet Türkmen, isn't it? I hope he serves as an example to all administrators and to us...