Imamoglu has been detained for 3 weeks: Özgür Özel exposes those who signed the diploma cancellation

Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairman Özgür Özel spoke at his party's parliamentary group meeting.

Our Chairman Özgür Özel is speaking at our party's parliamentary group meeting. https://t.co/2cKdzS3W4X

— CHP ???? (@herkesicinCHP) April 15, 2025

Ozel's statements are as follows:

While greeting our guests, news arrived. We had expressed in our group meeting that on Wednesday, the following day, March 19, the Istanbul University Faculty of Business Administration was going to make a decision regarding the diploma. Regarding the cancellation of Mr. Imamoglu's diploma. But rumors were coming in that they wanted to hear the decision a day earlier. They had dismissed the dean of the faculty because he said, "I cannot do such a thing."

They learned on Tuesday that they could not find 4 out of 7 members needed for the administrative board in the faculty, and were stuck at 2. As the time for iftar approached—and I went to an iftar dinner with families of martyrs and our veterans half an hour after receiving the news, the date was March 18—I made my first statements there. When they saw that the Faculty of Business Administration would not cancel the diploma on March 19, they hastily gathered the Istanbul University administrative board toward the time of iftar. This is definitely not a structure that can make decisions on behalf of the university like a senate composed of elected officials. And they decided to cancel the diploma from there.

"WE ARE ALL EXPERIENCING AN EXTRAORDINARY PROCESS TOGETHER"

From that moment on, for 4 weeks, for 28 days—I will touch upon its various points in a moment—we have been experiencing an extraordinary process together. In fact, on the day a trustee was appointed to our Esenyurt Mayor and an unjust operation was carried out against our Beşiktaş Municipality, I gathered our party assembly, our provincial chairs, and our parliamentary group in Istanbul. In front of the Istanbul Provincial Headquarters, when asked by esteemed members of the press, 'How do you evaluate these developments?', I said, 'I see this as a declaration of war.'

To the question, 'What will your response be?', I said, 'Whatever response a person or structure that has had war declared upon it would give, do not worry, that is the response we will give.' Again, at this podium, 3 weeks before March 18, when we decided to announce the candidate for the early election early and go to a primary for this, I read all the behaviors that emerged—that is, on one hand, the application for diploma cancellation, on the other hand, the demand for 25 years of imprisonment and a political ban in 5 cases, and on the other hand, the 2 operations we heard were underway and now see, conducted by MASAK regarding terrorism or financial crimes...

"THE CENTER OF THIS JUNTA IS BEŞTEPE"

This is a coup attempt against our future presidential candidate. We are warning those who are attempting this. I am announcing the coup attempt launched against Ekrem İmamoğlu on March 19. I thank the millions who repelled the coup carried out by a handful of putschists who disregard the national will. Every coup has a junta at its head. The center of this junta is Beştepe, the Palace. Every coup, of course, has its weapons. If it is the military, it is tanks and rifles. The weapon of a civilian coup, like today's, is the judiciary. Those weapons have ammunition. In a military coup, it is bullets and shells. 

In today's judicial coup, the ammunition is lies and slander. The March 19 civilian coup, which proceeds with lies and slander, under the instructions of someone, and through the judiciary, has never received support from the heart of the nation, just like the July 15 coup attempt, the September 12 coup, the March 12 coup, or the 1960 coup in the past. Before history, it will be condemned and defeated like the other coups. They get angry at those who speak out. They call anyone who comes forward a terrorist. After March 19, he has earned the title of junta leader. He is the head of the junta.

"A TÜGVA MEMBER SIGNED THE DIPLOMA CANCELLATION"

And as I expressed a moment ago, everything has materialized; the first step of the coup was taken. Frankly, in the coup planned for the afternoon of March 19—that is, while it was supposed to start with the diploma to be cancelled on March 19—they moved the coup up by one night, to March 18, with the same haste as the July 15 plotters, and gathered the Istanbul University board of directors at iftar time and cancelled the diploma.

We are examining those who signed the diploma cancellation one by one. Look, when you dig into one, they are a conservatory professor. You dig, they are the Head of the Culture Department at Sakarya Municipality. You dig, they are TÜGVA... A TÜGVA instructor. You dig, there are suspicions and controversies surrounding their own diplomas. You look, and those who did not allow the Faculty of Business Administration to sign the diploma cancellation appointed a TÜGVA member to the management of Istanbul University. That TÜGVA member signed the diploma cancellation. Now, this process, which is unlawful both procedurally and substantively, has caused the cancellation of the diplomas of 28 people from Ekrem Mayor's own faculty, Istanbul University, along with him. One of them is the Head of the Business Administration Department at Galatasaray University.

They even cancelled the diploma of a professor with a doctorate from the Sorbonne University and said, 'From today on, you are a high school graduate.' Imagine a state governed by the rule of law; if someone were to try to continue this madness, they would be invalidating the diplomas of thousands, tens of thousands of students who took that professor's classes and earned their degrees through them.

"IN OTHER WORDS, THEY ARE SAYING: İMAMOĞLU COULD BE A CANDIDATE, CANCEL IT QUICKLY"

In a fit of madness, they included this in the letter they sent to 'Cancel!' Ekrem İmamoğlu's diploma: 'Hurry! These diplomas are being used in official transactions. It has been 31 years, if I may say so. They can be submitted to many places, including the Supreme Election Council (YSK).' In other words, they are saying: 'Ekrem İmamoğlu could be a presidential candidate. Cancel this diploma quickly!' Now we are suffering the consequences of what these fanatics have done to this country. For example, Mehmet Şimşek is traveling the world, inviting investors to Turkey. He wants money to come to Turkey, he wants foreign capital to come.

That is not enough; he needs to provide confidence in Turkey so that the capital here, whether domestic or foreign, does not flee. But on the other hand, these things are happening. The whole world is asking. In 2019, an election was won in Turkey's largest city, the world's most well-known metropolis, and the certificate of election was cancelled.

"WHICH DOCUMENT ISSUED BY THIS STATE WILL THEY TRUST?"

The same person won two more elections after that. This time, a 31-year-old diploma was cancelled. The court cases are still ongoing. 24 companies that have received tenders related to the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, or companies belonging to people around Ekrem İmamoğlu, or even his own father's 35-year-old company, are being seized and trustees are being appointed to their 65-year-old assets just because they are in Ekrem İmamoğlu's circle. Yet, we are still at the beginning of the investigation, at the beginning of the prosecution. No one has been declared guilty, no one's crime has been proven, but what will happen to those companies at the hands of partisan trustees? They appointed trustees to two municipalities. They didn't appoint them to the others, but they appointed trustees to hundreds of thousands of billboards. 

In other words, to advertise their own regime, they are trying to seize the resources that the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality rents out, where advertisements will be published, which would have provided soup for city restaurants, mother cards, and milk support for children, and use them for their own benefit. Now, where is the rule of law in a place where the title deed issued by the state, the diploma issued by the state, the company licenses issued by the state, and the certificate of a won election are disregarded? Where is the security of property? Which document issued by this state will they trust?

"THEY DID NOT GIVE 100 BILLION TL TO RETIREES, BUT THEY BURNED 17 TIMES THAT AMOUNT IN RESERVES!"

How will they trust this state's treasury bonds or the stocks of companies guaranteed by this state? That is why, precisely for this reason, after the March 19 coup, Mehmet Şimşek had to burn 45 billion dollars—that is, 1 trillion 700 billion liras—to prevent the exchange rate from rising further. This is the cost of the March 19 coup. 45 billion dollars in reserves were burned. 31.5 billion dollars in losses were recorded on the stock market. While Turkey's risk premium should have been below 100, it rose to 371, as seen in similar economies. Whether the ministry borrows, the municipality borrows, or a company borrows, the interest we will pay for the next 10 years and the past 10 years has increased unnecessarily due to the high risk premium. 

A simple calculation: 20,000 liras have come out of every citizen's pocket for now. The total cost of this coup to Turkey, the money taken from the pocket of everyone in this hall, is 20,000 liras. They took 20,000 liras from the pocket of a baby born in Turkey last night, and they took 20,000 liras from the pocket of a 90-year-old grandmother. They took 20,000 liras from the pockets of all retirees, all civil servants, all minimum wage earners, all tradespeople, all villagers, and all young people just in this operation.

"I AM ADDRESSING ALL RETIREES..."

Before the coup, that is, 4 weeks ago, the minimum wage could buy 6.5 grams of gold. Today, they bought 5.5 grams of gold. The loss of the minimum wage earner based solely on their salary is 4,000 liras, which is 1 gram of gold. Just based on their salary. Beyond the 20,000 liras that is the total cost per person that we all have to bear, every minimum wage earner has lost 1 gram of gold. We had said, "Increase the lowest pension to the minimum wage!" They said, "There is no money!" We said it here. A year ago, it was 33 billion. They did a detailed calculation and said, "100 billion TL is needed." Today, 100 billion was needed for every retiree receiving 14,000 liras to receive 22,000 liras. They burned 17 times that amount out of fear of Ekrem İmamoğlu. I am addressing all retirees: Each of you could have received a minimum wage. 

They said, "This money doesn't exist!" but it turns out 17 times that amount existed. They burned that money away. But when you ask Mehmet Şimşek, he says, "These reserves were accumulated for days like these." In other words, this country is not using this money to give high salaries to its retirees, or to help its minimum wage earners—look, the poverty line is close to 70,000 liras. We have workers working below the hunger line. This money is not for them. Look, I will tell you in a moment. It burned away all over Turkey. All the fields, all the trees were hit by frost. These reserves, this money is not for them. Students, give scholarships to students based on gold, at one-fifth of what was given years ago. This money is not for them. Build dormitories, this money is not for them. What is this money for? This money is for Tayyip Erdoğan to eliminate his rival while in front of the world, saying, "The people are afraid! You can't stay in this country!" and canceling a diploma after 30 years. My money has no guarantee. He takes the money, and because the dollar spikes while he's taking it, he uses it to suppress it. He goes abroad.

"WE WILL DEFEND IT IN EVERY SQUARE IN ANATOLIA"

He is burning these reserves to prevent this panic, to keep the dollar from reaching 80 liras instead of its current price. You shouldn't have done this! You shouldn't have entered into this conspiracy! You shouldn't have carried out this coup! You should have given this money to the retirees, to the minimum wage earners, to the farmers whose crops were destroyed, as support payments. No, absolutely not. That is why this coup has a very heavy cost. Our friends in parliament, I from this podium, and we will defend both the coup and democracy in every square in Anatolia and in every square in Istanbul, and we will explain one by one how they found the money to eliminate Erdoğan's rival while they couldn't find money for this nation, how they burned it, and what liars they are. A 25% hike in electricity. Who will the money go to?

To the distribution companies that have been fully privatized. So, how many times the amount of a one-month price hike is this money being given? 340 times. This money being given is 28 times the total annual amount of the electricity price hike in Turkey. This money being given is 7 times the electricity that all of us consume together—in our homes, public offices, industry, and agriculture—for one year. Consuming electricity for 7 years. For 7 years, factories, fields, homes, schools, and government offices will keep consuming electricity, and it will only equal the amount of money they burned in the March 19 coup.

Now, they carry out that coup and impose a 25% price hike on the nation. The nation needs to see this, the nation needs to see this madness, and it must be clearly stated that while millions are shaking the squares with chants of 'We will win by resisting!', the true face of Mehmet Şimşek, who says 'We found that money for these days,' will be told to his face wherever he goes to find money from now on: 'You said it yourself.'

"I AM ANNOUNCING IT FROM HERE"

You have been hoarding the money you collected from here to use it during Turkey's transition from democracy to autocracy. I am announcing it from here: There is a coup. There is a junta at the head of it. The head of the junta is Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The person responsible for the financial leg of the junta is Mehmet Şimşek, and he will be held accountable. The junta is focused on the coup. On one hand, Turkey is burning. Apricots are burning in Malatya, grapes in Manisa, and all across Turkey, cherries, sugar beets, walnuts, citrus, tea, hazelnuts—whatever you can think of, whichever product comes to mind—burned in the frost in one or two nights. It reached a point where citrus producers were devastated. It reached a point where they did not pay the farmers the 178 billion they deserved last year. What they gave was much less. They did not pay the 178 billion that was deserved. While this frost was burning the farmers, the money Mehmet Şimşek burned was 1.7 trillion.

Now I look, and I am proud. I looked. I looked at all of your social media. All CHP deputies are in the field. How did you manage to get there so fast? One is in an apricot orchard, one in a citrus grove, one in a vineyard, one is listening to a crying walnut farmer. Another is dealing with the problem of another producer. One is with a tomato producer in Antalya. While I was in Saraçhane, in Maltepe, in all the districts of Istanbul, in Esenyurt, and with me in Samsun, here, resisting the climate law in Parliament, when the frost hit, after the frost hit and everyone was hurt, I kiss the forehead of every single member of my group who went there within hours. This is what a deputy is!

"A BAD MINDSET DISCONNECTED FROM THE NATION!"

While the salon politicians have those they appointed applaud them, the deputies of the nation are by the side of those who elected them. This is true politics! This is the struggle! The sign that the junta is coming to an end is both Ekrem İmamoğlu and the CHP group, who have entered the hearts of the nation.

The price of tomatoes has reached 8 liras when the producer sells them. The cost is 20 liras, and it is 50 liras at the market. While rebelling against this order, all our deputies from Antalya expressed this rebellion throughout this week. They reached out to us and said: 'The frost burned everyone, but the tomato producers and exporters in Antalya were devastated.' We will continue to defend them with all our might, both in Parliament by submitting motions and legislative proposals, and by being both in the field and here in Parliament, and by continuing this great struggle. We are facing a bad mindset that is disconnected from the nation. There is bad intent.

We are facing a structure that has turned into a gang because it has stripped justice from the state. The state is a structure that collects money, carries weapons, and imprisons people. But when governed with justice, those prisons are the guarantee of your property and mine. It locks up the thief—the real thief. The weapon it carries ensures that you can walk around unarmed, that your children can live in safety, and that women on the street can walk without fear. If it collects money and uses it to protect the poor, and if that money is not an act of tyranny, not money taken from the other side through threats, but a fair tax where it takes more from those who earn more, less from those who earn less, and nothing from those who cannot earn, then the state is fair in its taxation and services, and the services it provides with that money are what make a state a state. When you strip justice from the state, while 43 wealthy companies pay zero taxes, all of you—the retirees, minimum wage earners, workers, and the unemployed in Turkey—pay 68% in indirect taxes. Because the factory boss and the security guard pay the same tax on fuel, electricity, milk, and bread, when you strip justice from the state, you get an unjust tax system.

When you strip justice from the state, you pit the police—the children of this nation who carry weapons and shields—against the innocent children and students of this nation. When you strip justice from the state, you take those students who have never even spent a day in a bed, put them in prison, and make an example of them, keeping them away from their grandmothers, grandfathers, mothers, and little siblings during the holidays—perhaps even missing the chance to kiss their hands on the next holiday. Knowing they won't even spend a day in prison, you keep them in Silivri for an entire holiday, causing their families to lose sleep during the first days when they were held in criminal wards. This business turns the state into a gang when you strip justice from it. We will not stop, we will not stop, we will not stop until we rescue the Republic of Turkey—which Atatürk founded, which we all respect, to which we go when called to military service, for which we give our lives and limbs if necessary, and to which we pay our taxes—from the hands of this criminal organization, save it from becoming a gang, and turn it into a fair, democratic, and strong state of law!

We are facing a malicious mindset that has become detached from the nation. There is an evil intent. We are facing a structure that has turned into a gang because it has stripped justice from the state. The state is a structure that collects money, carries weapons, and imprisons people.

SHARP REACTION TO 'NORMAL BIRTH' BANNER: THESE PEOPLE MAKE ONE ASHAMED TO BE A MAN

Look, the state in their hands views women through a different lens. They have handed football teams over to men, and their banners dictate how birth should take place. My brother! How many children a woman will have, how she will give birth if she is to give birth, how she will raise them, how she will dress, what she will eat and drink, and how much she will laugh are matters for the woman herself. It is not anyone's place to speak on this! It is not for any of us. Stop speaking and making decisions on behalf of women. These people make one ashamed to be a man, I tell you that much.

Furthermore, the integrated form of the attack on women, the mentality—they ask the Minister of Health: 'Do only men watch the match?' he says. He hasn't even understood the essence of the matter, the message given, or the primary target of that malicious message. Or rather, the mind that made him say it knew he wouldn't be capable of grasping it, so they didn't even provide him with information on the subject...

But the worst part is this: there are places where this has become concrete. What happened? To our Üsküdar Mayor Sinem Dedetaş, the person who writes, draws, speaks, and has news reported on behalf of this AK Party—the person who claimed to know the coup was coming four months before it happened, who stayed silent, who said the chickens would be counted after their feathers grew—that is, the person who knows, writes, and says this information and praises the AK Party at every opportunity—has targeted our Üsküdar Mayor, our dear sister, our young child, whom the people of Üsküdar took from the hands of the AK Party and entrusted to this well-educated, hardworking, productive, and successful administrator, Sinem Dedetaş. 

Despite the services rendered there and the magnificent satisfaction rates in the polls, this shameless person turned around and insulted her with a sexist approach. Subsequently, this shameless person made heavy accusations and insults against our female municipal council member, our sister Bahar Günçiçek, who will be the Mayor of Bahçelievler. It didn't stop there. They insulted our Izmit Mayor Fatma Kaplan Hürriyet. They got their answer, but they insulted her shamelessly. Is there anyone in the AK Party who hears a voice? A single voice! Remember, our Kadıköy Deputy Mayor, a person with a clean record and a good lawyer, was insulted by an AK Party female municipal council member during Ramadan. I am conveying my regrets once again.

But if we have the authority, let's withdraw the file, friends; if not, let's never, ever punish our friend in the face of such ugly filth. Enough is enough! Enough. You shameless men! You shameless men! One of you, just send a tweet! These people have children, spouses, mothers, fathers. Is it okay for you to insult us, but for us to say 'Ugh!' is forbidden? Is every kind of evil permissible for you, but whatever we do is forbidden for us? There is no such easy politics! There is no such easy politics! You will get off the backs of this nation.

If someone insults the mother of an AK Party member, I consider that insult as if it were directed at my own mother. If something is done to the spouse of an MHP member, if words are spoken, I consider that insult as if it were directed at my own spouse. If someone's child is upset, I consider it as if it were done to my own child. This is our stance. But to those on the other side who have lost their sense of shame, who have left their honor at home, and who have become so base, I say this: Get off our backs, we don't want anything else from you.

HARSH REACTION TO MINISTER TEKİN

On one hand, the coup attacked university students, and they got their answer. It attacked Ekrem İmamoğlu, and he got his answer. Now it is attacking high school students. They ask, 'Does the Republican People's Party want to stir up Turkey?' Well, take a look, who is taking the first steps? Am I the one stirring up the high schools, or is it this backward-minded Minister of National Education who is attacking these project schools out of nowhere?

Look, let me say this much. First, they have established the persuasion rooms they complained about in the past via telephone lines. They are calling the families of university students who participate in protests using facial recognition systems. They threaten them by saying, 'We have footage of your child; if they participate in another protest,' or if they go. Now they have extended this to high schools, where children are under 18. Filming them and processing that data are extremely sensitive and dangerous matters. They call the families and threaten them, saying, 'The student at such-and-such school participated in a protest in the courtyard; they will be expelled from school, their diploma will be burned.' They have turned the persuasion rooms of the past into a digital system. And the project school initiative, which started in 2014 with the promise of 'We will make 3-5 schools, we will make project schools,' today has 2,153 schools. Currently, 85,000 teachers are working in project schools.

And these project schools are the most successful, well-known, and recognized schools in every province and district, with strong traditions and a history full of achievements. You have to get the highest scores to enter these schools. The best of the students should be there, and the best of the teachers should be there. You need to look at it based on merit, frequently provide in-service training to those teachers, subject them to exams, give them success scores, and both train those teachers to be compatible with students and the modern age, improve their competencies, and keep them in those schools consistently. Previously, if teachers were successful for 20 years, they could stay in these schools. They came in 2020 and made it 4+4 years, 4 years, and then another 4 years if extended. And Yusuf Tekin stated in his explanation yesterday that it is limited to 6,000 teachers. They are tearing 6,000 teachers, 6,000 successful teachers, away from their schools, away from their students, and this Yusuf Tekin, using an authority he put into law in previous years—which we took to the Constitutional Court—is appointing 6,000 teachers and bringing in 6,000 new ones with a ministerial decree, without measuring, without evaluating, without putting them through an exam, and without looking at their success. 

"THOSE LEAVING ARE MERITOCRATIC, DISCIPLINED, ATATÜRKIST TEACHERS..."

The common feature: Those leaving are meritocratic, hardworking, disciplined, enlightened, and Atatürkist teachers. The common feature of those arriving: Teachers who come from a single partisan union, with no documented or known qualifications other than obedience, and who are inexperienced. Surely there are some among them who are good in their fields. Hold an exam, let them compete. Set an experience requirement, let them prepare somewhere first. But they are bringing these teachers just because they are partisans. I went to Bornova Anatolian High School when I was 10 years old. I entered that school as a child and graduated as a student candidate to win university. This year, I invited my teachers from that school to Anıtkabir on November 24th along with all the other teachers. Among the teachers who came to Anıtkabir, there were those who were CHP members, those who were in the old MHP, and those who became district chairs after retirement and are now involved in politics in the IYI Party. During school, we didn't know their parties or their views, but we received the best lessons and the best education from them. What you call the state is concerned with the merit of the teacher it places in front of a 10-year-old child, not their loyalty. That school is a free boarding school. We grew up on the state's bread and reached this point.

"A NATIONAL GOVERNMENT CANNOT EMERGE FROM THOSE WHO REMAIN SEATED WHILE THE NATIONAL ANTHEM IS PLAYED"

Throughout my life, I attended public primary school, middle school, and high school on a state scholarship, and I attended a state university. My child attended and graduated from public schools, and I completed my long-term military service. When I came back, while I was busy with my own work, I entered politics, entered the profession, and arrived here to become the leader of the main opposition. There is one thing I know: If a state is fair and compassionate, it does not create enemies for itself. Neither a terrorist nor a traitor can emerge from me, from anyone in this hall, or from anyone whom the state approaches with fairness and compassion. But a domestic and national government cannot emerge today from those who were lawyers for those who protested in front of Atatürk's mausoleum in the past, from those who brought in people who acted as lawyers for those who burned Sivas, or from those who remained seated while the National Anthem was played in the past. If anything emerges from them, it is a great disaster for both the state and the nation, just like them. We will get rid of them all together, hopefully.

Let me say one thing. We are a party that maintains the same relationship with Palestine as our 3rd Chairman and Prime Minister of the Republic of Turkey, Bülent Ecevit, established with Yaser Arafat. And we are the leftists and social democrats of Turkey, standing like lions on the same line as Deniz Gezmiş and his friends were sincere and brave in the Palestinian cause. Our line is clear. In the past, it was our elders who threw the 6th Fleet into the sea when it arrived. Those who welcomed it and prayed towards it while waiting for it have now moved on, having pretended to defend the Palestinian cause for a long time. 

A "PALESTINE" DIG AT THE GOVERNMENT

Today, the CHP stands where the youth who stood against the 6th Fleet stood. The CHP still stands behind the Palestine Liberation Organization, the Palestinian cause, the 1967 borders, a Jerusalem with two capitals, and an independent Palestine. The position Trump has taken here is this: "Gaza is nice, it's good, it has a coast. I will build beautiful residences and hotels there." The story is that he will build that, but there are enough hydrocarbons in the sea right in front of it to last Europe for 100 years. He is going there to seize it. He says, "Let's scatter the Palestinians to 5-6 countries." One of them is Turkey. And he says, "Let that place be emptied, let it become very valuable, let it be mine." 

He is attempting to displace people through deportation, and this government, which is supposed to uphold the Palestinian cause—I have nothing to say to my conservative Muslim brothers who gathered this weekend to support the honorable cause of Palestine and expressed their own views; they are sincere. However, this government, which in the past lived off Palestine, spoke in domestic politics saying, "No, I said 'One minute'," told the Mavi Marmara activists, "Did you ask me or the prime minister of the time?" when they said, "I will board if necessary," and who gave a date six times saying, "I will go to Palestine" but never went—now, while cooking up a deal with Netanyahu under Trump's instructions and preparing the ground, the newspaper that gives good news or hurls insults on their behalf is claiming that the Palestinians are preparing for a migration, a 'hijra'. 

"VOLUNTARY SUBMISSION TO TRUMP..."

They are disguising deportation as a 'hijra'. They are trying to use the year 622, the forced migration of the Prophet from Mecca to Medina, as a tool for voluntary submission to Trump today. Bowing respectfully before every sincere conservative and every sincere nationalist who voted for them in the past, I say to these shameless people: You are calling this plan of Trump's to empty that place, seize the hydrocarbons, and turn Gaza into a city of casinos a 'hijra', and you are using Prophet Muhammad as a tool for it. Shame on you! Shame on you!

There are some who do not see the March 19 coup attempt. Those who see it but ignore it, those who do not show it. I am not saying anything to the pro-government media. They are already instructed as the media arm of an operation, discussing all kinds of lies and slanders by fueling them, but they have fallen from the eyes of the nation, from their hearts, and from the ratings.

I am not saying anything to them. But there are those who employ my brothers and sisters who want to do journalism, yet do not see the news they produce and do not broadcast the reports they should. On that matter, the Republican People's Party is not alone; it has taken a boycott decision with a great consensus in all squares. Against those who do not see us, do not broadcast us, and do not hear our voice.

"THIS WAS ONLY A SUPPORT BOYCOTT BECAUSE THE YOUTH WANTED IT"

After all, in a city like Istanbul, 1,200,000 people gather in the Historical Peninsula in one night, becoming news and headlines for all world televisions and newspapers. Four days later, the largest crowd in history, the Maltepe crowd, gathers in the square, which was undermined by the holiday break. The nation rises up, suppresses a coup, and you play dead there. We started a boycott against this. The list regarding the boycott is on our website and can be followed at boykotyap.org. These are the firms and the products of these firms that they earn money from because they earn from us and serve the palace. Apart from this, the youth wanted it, and we supported a one-day general boycott. They told the biggest lie in the world, saying, "The boycott did not work." Even though you all saw it, it turned out that shopping dropped to 53%. 

But this was only a support boycott because the youth wanted it. We are not conducting a general consumption boycott. We are punishing the media and its subsidiary companies. We are expecting a recovery these days, and we are following it. We will follow how much progress they have made in certain stages until the next rally. Therefore, I want to express once again that we have no boycott other than the boykotyap.org site, but that you should embrace the boycott you see on that site to the end, and I turn and look. We have started to examine how much tax the companies we boycott pay. We see that most of them have had no tax base for 3 years. I invite all these companies once again to comply with the law, to hear the voice of the nation, and to serve the nation, not the coup plotters.

For some time now, a new process has been underway regarding the Kurdish issue, the Kurdish problem. A process whose name they are afraid to put... a process where they hide what they want to do. They tell us: "Something is going to happen, support it." And we say: "Be transparent, be open. Come to the Parliament, bring it to the Parliament, make the Parliament work. Get the consent of the nation, the consent of the nation's representatives. Get the consent of NGOs, families of martyrs, veterans, terror victims, and everyone who has suffered grievances for years in this process," we say.

We are maintaining our historical consistency. Now it has been announced that the Ministry of Justice and the DEM delegation will come together for the legal steps to be taken. Of course, it should not only go through delegations and ministries. However, this meeting should be held if it will create a ground for the Parliament, for the Parliament. When we say "Legal regulation, we say Parliament, we say law," those who say to us "Why don't you say a terror-free Turkey?" and when we say "The Kurdish issue must be solved through democratic means," they say "There is no Kurdish issue, there is only a terror problem," we now see that when they are in a tight spot, they have started to talk about legal regulations and legislative changes. It is clear where those who were making big promises that day and those who were accusing the Republican People's Party that day have come to today.

HE ADDRESSED BAHÇELİ

While we know that this government has no share in, nor any remaining capacity for, democracy, brotherhood, unity, rights, law, or justice—and that it was never in their essence to begin with—we set aside the MHP's difficult-to-define stance and, despite everything, the CHP stands exactly where it has always stood, as I summarized just a moment ago.

We will support any kind of peace, any kind of negotiation, and any sincere effort in this regard that ensures no more martyrs are lost, no tears are shed by the mothers of Kurds or Turks, no more blood is spilled, and no more vast sums of money are poured into these matters, contributing to Turkey's future. However, for those who say, 'Imamoğlu supported the terrorist organization by hiring Kurds in the West into municipal councils,' those who were throwing ropes at each other until yesterday, or those who tried to label us as terrorists just because we said, 'We established relations with the DEM Party as a political party like others,' we only want our nation to see their hypocrisy and to see the historical consistency of the Republican People's Party. Beyond that, no one should look for anything else in the Republican People's Party.

We support a Turkey without terrorism. But I ask you, Mr. Bahçeli, they want a Turkey without ballot boxes. Are you supporting that, or are you coming to stand by democracy? Tell me this, let us see.

"THERE ARE INCREDIBLE THINGS COMING TO LIGHT..."

On one hand, since I haven't been here for 28 days, I have been on the bus, and I will continue to be; we will all continue to be in Turkey together. Let them not think I have given up on following the trail of ideas. Everything is not so easily discussed on top of a bus. Before going to Erdoğan, I had asked about the relationship between TRNC Ambassador Yasin Ekrem Serim and the organized crime leader Halil Falyalı. He remained silent. He said nothing. He is still silent. Who is this Ekrem Serim? He is the son of Maksut Serim, who has been Erdoğan's treasurer since his time as Mayor of Istanbul. He is the person who has managed the discretionary fund since Erdoğan became Prime Minister and during his presidency. His son became Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. Then he became the ambassador to Cyprus. Then, on the day I mentioned it, he was abruptly removed from his ambassadorial post. Erdoğan does not respond, but Cemil Önal, Halil Falyalı's finance manager between 2014 and 2021, explained everything one by one. 

He confirmed what I said and explained much more. Something is emerging: Hakan Fidan is involved in this, Binali Yıldırım is involved in this. The children of these friends, these politicians, this former prime minister, and the current minister are involved in this. There are 45 recordings involved in this. 40 of them have been seized, and five are still out there. This includes large sums of money going to and coming from an account in England while he was Deputy Foreign Minister and ambassador. There are ships involved in this, ships that were caught, that is separate. But everything was spilled out in Cyprus. Incredible things are coming to light; as they say, the biggest radish is yet to come, there is a radish almost as big as Cyprus... And inside, inside, inside, there are 45 recorded tapes that İbrahim Kalın also knows about, 40 in hand, five in one place. The ambassador appointed after that. The ambassador who was removed when these came to light. 

"WE ARE LOOKING FOR ONE PROSECUTOR WHO WILL RISK EVERYTHING..."

Mr. Erdoğan, you make someone who is not from the profession, who has no experience, the Private Secretary to the Foreign Minister, then Deputy Foreign Minister, and then ambassador to our apple-of-the-eye, Cyprus, and I would be ashamed to read these one by one. There is the presumption of innocence. Hakan Fidan's son says this to that person. Binali Bey's son says this to that person. I am ashamed to say these here. I am not Erdoğan. The person who calls someone a thief before the accusations are finalized and says things based on the slanders of false witnesses is named Erdoğan. All the filth has been spilled out here. Now, we are looking for one prosecutor who will risk everything regarding these named individuals. Let's see, for example, the subtitles are passing today. In the Republican People's Party congress, 86 people, including Ekrem İmamoğlu, are being asked for their statements. It is all written there. Let me say this, the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has received and listened to every kind of application that came to it as a requirement of its duty.

They are listening to everyone mentioned, even if it is just based on slander. This is also clear; they wanted to be secret witnesses. For example, they brought one of our delegates as a secret witness. They were told, 'There is no such thing as secret testimony; if you give your name, I will hear you.' We find the stance taken here to be correct. We are also following it closely. Everyone mentioned must be heard. It has been decided as such, and they will be heard. Every question asked will be answered. 

"THE 'CONGRESS' INVESTIGATION"

Every slander leveled has already been completely exposed during the process. Just as the lie about 1,300 mobile phones exploded, all allegations will be refuted one by one; they are already being refuted. While Ekrem İmamoğlu, whose testimony is being sought, is currently inside, and many people whose testimony is being sought are either inside or in the hall, those 1,300 lion-hearted Republican People's Party members—whose personal honor was attacked and who were smeared—came, drew the curtain once again, were left alone with their consciences, and renewed their will. I salute those who called that congress dubious, especially the government and its media, and I kiss them all on the forehead.

We are following the investigation process that was initiated in the past to appoint trustees to the party and for perception management, during which the names of 80 people were put forward by 3-5 fanatics. There is nothing for us to worry about to that extent. However, contrary to what some, the pro-government media, are trying to stir up after the last congress, the Republican People's Party is a party with no divisions, no 'others,' walking toward power arm in arm and shoulder to shoulder. I greet all of them, all our members, with respect.

"LOOK, WHAT HAS ERDOĞAN BEEN ACCUSED OF?"

Now let's come to this: Let's look at the history of those who took Ekrem İmamoğlu from his home with a police raid on impossible, baseless accusations, kept him in detention for 4 days, and put him in Silivri; let's remember something. Look, what has Erdoğan been accused of? Meeting with terrorists. It was alleged that Erdoğan paid the hotel expenses of the leaders of the Chechen and Muslim Brotherhood organizations. For this reason, it was claimed that Erdoğan formed an organization under the name of a "team." He remained silent on the allegations. He called it a political entity, but it turned out that the Muslim Brotherhood Organization and the Chechen mafia, the terrorists, were involved in what he formed. He said, "I am the future prime minister." He received commissions from tenders. The commission was also given to the party. Tenders were held through consultation, rivals were withdrawn, and some were encouraged. A bribery and embezzlement investigation was opened against Erdoğan and Gürtuna. He was going to be tried as a gang leader. It says, "They are accused of embezzlement and fraud." 

He gave a statement regarding the Akbil case and said, "I have no knowledge of what happened with Akbil." Then, he made everyone who had knowledge of it a member of parliament and saved them from the judiciary. A newspaper came out with the headline "Advertising Collection." 37 billion liras were paid for advertising. However, these advertisements were not broadcast. Promotion was done for Erdoğan from the municipal treasury. A billboard scandal occurred. He is seizing billboards today, isn't he? A lawsuit was filed for the billboard scandal, and the billboard scandal case was heard. Here, there is embezzlement, forming a gang, being a ringleader, bid rigging and profiteering, aiding members of a terrorist organization, and using the municipal treasury for his own PR. 

There are two sides to what is happening: 1- Tayyip Erdoğan was tried for some of these. He was investigated for some, a lawsuit was filed, and he was tried. During the trials, it stopped; for example, he became a member of parliament, the Akbil case stopped, and then it was dropped using the methods you know. He appeared before the court countless times, but not once was the police sent to his home. Not once did they show up at his door in the morning. For every statement, he was called by phone, he went, and he gave his statement. He received a sentence. We did not find it right that he received a sentence for a poem. His sentence was upheld. His mayorship was dropped, and he served 3 months in prison. While going to the place where he would serve his sentence, he held a rally in front of the municipality in Istanbul; he was not prevented. Even when his sentence was upheld, he was not taken by the police; he was invited. And he was seen off there with a rally. In the prison where he stayed, they say he received 30,000 visits, according to his own claims. 30,000 people. Now they are criticizing those who go to see Mayor Ekrem, but he received 30,000 visits. 

"THE MASAK REPORT IS OUT, IT IS COMPLETELY EMPTY, THERE IS NOT A SINGLE PIECE OF EVIDENCE"

In the period that they used to criticize in the past, calling it 'serving the government' and 'not impartial,' and when they promised to lift immunities and became prime minister and government, and when asked to 'let's lift them,' they said, 'Are we going to lift them with this judiciary?', neither he nor any journalist—as his own friends and deputies say—was ever subjected to such simultaneous, centrally managed operations where 5-6 prosecutors at once interrogated separate crimes and secret crimes together, nor was this persecution or character assassination carried out. He was allowed to hold a rally with drums and pipes in Saraçhane. Look at what he is doing today. But what I am reading, these, the same accusations are being made. They are being asked of Ekrem İmamoğlu. They are being asked of our friends. Bank receipts are being investigated. The MASAK report is out, it is completely empty. There is not a single piece of evidence. Then let me tell you what is happening. 

Tayyip Bey constantly says this: 'Whoever wins Istanbul wins Turkey. Whoever loses Istanbul loses Turkey.' He has settled this in his mind. 'I won Istanbul, I won Turkey,' he says. 'Now it is Ekrem's turn.' He says, 'The resources of that Istanbul Municipality were in my hands back then, now they are in Ekrem's.' He says, 'I did this on billboards back then. I did this in Akbil, meaning in countless matters. I did this in advertising. I even asked for money from a terrorist organization back then, and I sent it. I even had my own PR done by the IMM back then. So he is doing it too,' he says. He calls and tells these things to Akın. 'He is doing it like this,' he says. 'Go, you will find it,' he says. 'As if you placed it with your own hand,' he says. 'I am the one who knows this business,' he says. 'I am the one who set up this business,' he says. 'Now Ekrem has taken over, and if he has the same powers as I did, he is definitely doing these things,' he says. 

There are one or two people here and there fueling him. 'If you don't take this Istanbul out of his hands, this Ekrem is coming. He got 60 in the polls. He is doing this, he is doing that.' He doesn't know that Ekrem İmamoğlu manages honestly and cleanly. He does 4 times, 2 times the work with half the budget, not double the budget. In other words, he saves 3/4 of it without stealing. He does twice the work with half the budget. And he doesn't eat that money, nor does he let others eat it. Who does he feed it to? He feeds it to people at the city restaurant. Who does he feed it to? He gives milk to poor children. Who does he feed it to?

"THE MASAK REPORT IS LIKE A NAPKIN BAG"

Instead of handing it over to cronies, he serves the citizens. Akın got the fuel, he went. He searched for this, he searched for that. He did it this way, he did it that way, it didn't work. He assigned three pieces of wood named Oak, Pine, and Spruce—sorry, Oak, Spruce, and Pine. They are actually Tayyip Bey in total. These false witnesses, false in terms of Mayor Ekrem, are witnesses to Tayyip Erdoğan's past. Because they know how Tayyip Bey managed the IMM, how he used the resources there for himself, and how he financed his party's government from there, the Spruce, Oak, and Pine are slanderers who know the Istanbul Metropolitan process. But the thing is, the request for the report from MASAK, MASAK, MASAK in December, January, February, a deputy mayor's persuasion for this, March 10th, the completion of the report on the 17th. So they were talking about a non-existent MASAK report in December, January, and February. The MASAK report is like an empty napkin bag; you shake it, and it falls apart. 

Everything they call evidence has rotted away. The European Court of Human Rights says, our Constitutional Court says: one cannot be arrested or punished solely on the testimony of a secret witness. A secret witness says: 'Person A gave a bribe to Person B.' You will look, you will find the evidence of that bribe, it is not there. Pine doesn't even say, 'I saw it,' he says, 'I heard it.' Spruce doesn't even say, 'I did it,' he says, 'He did it.' That is why we are at this stage, inside an unbelievable lie. They have started to distribute our friends from prisons and make special visits to the places they went, saying, 'Look, you are different from the others. Come on, accept this statement, you get out, let them lie in prison.' There are confessors. Don't be among those who remain, among those who burn; be among those who get out. 

"A PERSON KNOWS THE BUSINESS FROM THEMSELVES" OPERATION

They say to female detainees, "How old is your child?" "1.5, sir." "Well, you need to return to them tomorrow. If I disconnect from this broadcast, from this SEGBİS, you will only see your child again when they are 15. Will you do as I say? Will you become a confessor?" The woman replies: "There is nothing for me to confess. I didn't steal, they didn't tell me to steal. I didn't plunder, they didn't tell me to plunder. I have done nothing wrong." "If you confirm the secret witness's statement, you will embrace your child; otherwise, you will face 15 years in prison." There is such a psychological struggle going on. They are trying to buy, manipulate, and change people's morality through their children. That is why, is there a name for this matter, for this operation? I think there is. I say this through the lens of Tayyip Erdoğan. The name of this operation is: the "A person knows the job from themselves" operation. 

RESPONSE TO BAHÇELİ ON "TRIAL"

I have read what Mr. Bahçeli said and what he wrote. In some places, I smiled. In others, I laughed at the calculations, and I did the math myself. For example, he says: "28 times more," no, he says "18.5 times more votes Erdoğan received from CHP's ballot boxes." The ballot boxes he calls CHP's are our own member ballot boxes of 1.6 million. He received 18 times that. In the places where we opened them to the public in the name of solidarity, where anyone who heard could come within 4 days, and where we couldn't even reach the villages, he received 15.5 million votes. If I may say so, that is 3.5 times the votes Mr. Devlet received. Therefore, because of this, we see the setup and the conspiracy, and we are as sure as our honor that Ekrem İmamoğlu is innocent. I find the emphasis Mr. Devlet places on the trials being fast and his statement, "If he is innocent, let him be released and acquitted," to be valuable. That is our wish, and I hope to see those days together with Mr. Bahçeli. 

"TRT" CALL

Since we believe in the presumption of innocence, since we value the votes cast by the nation, what do you say to Mr. İmamoğlu—who was entrusted with Istanbul just a year ago by the vote of one in every two people—being tried without detention, or at least, even if there is a deputy in his position, at least regaining his freedom, and in fact, returning to his post during the trial just like Mr. Tayyip did, and the court being conducted like the courts of Tayyip Erdoğan back then? And I add one more thing, Mr. Bahçeli: what do you say to these trials being held openly and transparently on TRT and every channel that wishes to broadcast them, so that every question asked can be answered in front of the nation? We can meet you here. Fast, fair trial. If the crime is proven, prison; if acquitted, return to duty, trial without detention, and trial on television. 

I know this, Mr. Bahçeli. In the MASAK report, when a valuation was made 10 years ago with today's values, it was seen that the land in question was purchased at 1/20th of the price. "What will you say, İmamoğlu? I wish this were on live television." This happened inside, at the police station, at the prosecutor's office. "Oh my God! That's the down payment. I sent the down payment from my own account. I think we used a loan from such-and-such state bank for the principal amount." The lawyer comes out, asks, and the fax arrives. "Yes, sir, Mr. Ekrem paid 1/20th as a down payment, and the rest was covered by a bank loan. The loan was closed in 5 years, in 10 years." "Ah, okay, let's move past this then." We moved past the entire MASAK report like this. No evidence came out of what they called a massive MASAK report. That is why now, that is why now they are trying to manufacture 50 new witnesses from AK Party contractors. People who worked at the IMM during the AK Party era. Question: "Why didn't you get a tender later? They were asking for bribes, and you didn't give them."

"WHERE WAS THE EVIDENCE YOU HAD?"

There is no evidence, no witness, no proof. "Where have you been since that day? I've been in the Turkey Century campaign, I've been in the ministries. Where have you been since that day? I've been here, there, at the Directorate of Communications." In fact, while trying to prove a crime, they are exposing an old and current, established chain of prosperity—that the vultures who sat in the IMM are now landing in the garden of the Directorate of Communications, staying in ministries, organizing Teknofest, and running the campaigns of the ministries, and that if a trustee were appointed to the IMM, they would go back and land in that garden. They say they found 50 new witnesses. If your file was strong, as Mr. Tayyip scolded you on the phone, if your file was strong, where was your evidence? Where, where? Where was the evidence you had in your hand?

You couldn't prove a single one. While asking Mr. Ekrem, while asking our friends, you turned around, pressured our friends, and on the other side, you used false witnesses; now you are bringing them in. How do we know these things? There are those among them who received these offers and said, 'God forbid, I wouldn't do such a thing.' They say, 'God forbid.' They say, 'I didn't even go.' They say, 'The CHP came and took it, I didn't even enter the tender.' They say, 'I came, I entered from places I knew here.' Or they say, 'I won one or two tenders.' They say, 'I have some I won, some I didn't.' They say, 'Why would I slander?' They come and tell these stories. Now, there will be another trial in the future, right, after the elections; those who slandered, those who had it done, the false witnesses—by God, the FETO prosecutors are on the run, but they put the false witnesses of that day in prison today. Now, those who cannot find real witnesses, who construct operations with secret witnesses, who cannot reach concrete evidence, who get an answer to every question they ask as concrete evidence, are now trying to create witnesses one by one, like origami art, like making paper boats. I remind those who gave statements by falling for the bait of FETO-affiliated prosecutors and are now rotting in prison for 25 years. If you know something and can prove it today, do not hold back; we have no fear. If you are going to slander today and we prove it tomorrow, then think for yourself about the punishment you will face. I say to the secret witnesses, I say to the witnesses they are now trying to create as cronies: You can only burn as much as your own crime.

"THERE IS A PROSECUTOR IN BURSA WHO OBJECTS TO RELEASE DECISIONS..."

You cannot smear honest people. When the day comes, you will be held accountable for this filth. Finally, as we reach the end, 301 of our children were taken from us during the holiday. The students were released, we are very pleased. That is correct, but it is not enough. 240 remain, 71 are still inside. We are following 46 in Istanbul, 15 in Bursa, and 10 in Izmir—71 of our children. I am telling the public this: The sensitivity must continue until not a single student of ours remains inside. For example, in Bursa, 15 of our young people, 3 of whom are women, are detained. They are missing their visa exams. There are those whose mothers have cancer. There are those who were workers and were fired from their jobs. There are those who could not pay their debts and are in a helpless state. Therefore, these releases need to happen very quickly. Also, there is a prosecutor in Bursa who objects to release decisions. They haven't even spent a day in jail. 

"WE EXPECT OUR BRILLIANT YOUNG PEOPLE TO REGAIN THEIR FREEDOM AS SOON AS POSSIBLE"

The whole holiday has passed, you have kept them inside for 15 days, and then you turn around and object when the children are released. One of our lawyers, Ahmet Keskin, is inside; we are following it, and the important point is this: There are different accusations against some friends, some students. For some, it is for insulting the President. A whole square, they did a 'jump, jump' protest, and they are trying to hold 5-6 people accountable with detention just because they didn't jump or because they said, 'They said Tayyip Bey's name.' 'The whole square said 'dictator Tayyip'.' They are trying to hold a few young people accountable for this with detention. From this point on, insulting the President is subject to the permission of the Ministry of Justice. The process is dragging on. The friends here are being victimized for nothing. We expect our 71 brilliant, clean, spotless young people, who do not have a single criminal record in their past, who have no connection to any organization, and who are at most members of the Republican People's Party or not, to regain their freedom as soon as possible.

News Source: 12punto