Congratulatory visit from IMM Mayor İmamoğlu to Esenyurt Mayor Özer: 'Like the United Nations'

Esenyurt Mayor Prof. Dr. Ahmet Özer hosted the visit, which was attended by CHP Deputy Chairman Özgür Karabat, Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, CHP Esenyurt District Chairman Hüseyin Ergin, and IMM District Municipalities Coordinator Tonguç Çoban. Mayor Özer thanked Karabat and İmamoğlu for the congratulatory visit and presented Ekrem İmamoğlu with a painting prepared by trainees attending Esenyurt Municipality courses.

"101 LANGUAGES ARE SPOKEN"

Expressing that they aim to make Esenyurt the most peaceful city in Turkey within 5 years, Mayor Özer said, "Esenyurt is the city of 'mosts'. It is the most populous city. We have our best sides and our most negative sides. We believe that by eliminating those negative sides under your leadership and through the cooperation we will establish, we will make our Esenyurt the most peaceful, livable city in Turkey that befits the 21st century within the next 5 years. We will discuss some issues with the presentation I will make to you shortly. You are no stranger to this place anyway. You served as mayor in Beylikdüzü for 5 years. This is a neighboring district. It is a city that has received very large migration in a very short time, with a population of 1 million officially and around 1 million 600 thousand unofficially, where there is the most deprivation in Turkey and the poor are at the hunger threshold. On the other hand, Esenyurt is the district with the most young people. We have 240 thousand young people aged 25 and under. I think this is a ratio that does not even exist in provinces. People who have migrated from all 81 provinces of Turkey live in our city. There are people from 101 countries in Esenyurt, and 101 different languages are spoken. It is almost like a small United Nations. For this reason, we have aimed to make our city a city of peace and brotherhood. This is our greatest ideal. It is also one of the ideals of the Republican People's Party. At the same time, we must create a city where this peace and brotherhood are revived, where people live happily, peacefully, and in prosperity, and where municipal problems are solved. We think that you will be our greatest supporter in this regard. We believe that we will succeed in this under your leadership. I would like to express here, in particular, that you are a great chance for Istanbul and for Turkey. I would like to state that I am very happy to be a companion with you and to work together."

"OUR EYES AND EARS ARE..."

Underlining that they aim to bring solidarity-based and action-oriented municipalism to Esenyurt, Mayor İmamoğlu said the following:

"Esenyurt will always be a district that we keep our eyes and hands on. We are already obliged to do this, both with its population and its multifaceted problems. This is an obligation, but it also has a sensitive side. First; I am also a person from this region. I have witnessed everything that has happened and is happening here for many years. In this respect, I hope that we can achieve successes far beyond our cooperation in this geography. It is the duty of all of us to ensure high cooperation and high public participation here, to make them feel that they can stand up by overcoming this process together, to ensure that each of them feels like an Esenyurt resident, but at the same time to increase their happiness and satisfaction. For this reason, we know the needs of Esenyurt, we know its people. We also know more or less what our fellow citizens might demand. Now, I care about this situation with both your local government experience and your educator and instructor side. Because this place can only achieve success in the light of reason and science. In this context, we will succeed in the leadership you will demonstrate in Esenyurt, together with the intensive efforts of our valuable companions, especially the council members, employees, but especially our political companions. With the contribution of the fact that our Deputy Chairman is here today, and with the awareness of helping you and supporting you at all times with a sense of mobilization, I sincerely believe that we can achieve all these things we have thought of. When we go back to the last 20 years, especially when we look from that day to today, there are mistakes that need to be examined very carefully. There are very big mistakes that need to be learned from. Not specifically for Esenyurt, but specifically for local governance in all of Turkey, we can come up with many examples that we would say 'don't ever do this'. But what's done is done. Now it is our duty to fix this. There is nothing to do. We have no doubt that we will succeed. We wish success to all of us, to all of you."

News Source: İHA