CHP leader Özgür Özel's 'tea-simit' calculation: 'You said it to Ecevit, now I am asking you'

CHP Chairman Özgür Özel spoke at his party's parliamentary group meeting.

Highlights from Özel's speech:

"THEY SAID 10 THOUSAND TL IS ENOUGH"

"We are heading toward local elections in 2 months. Some are focused on hardening politics, polarizing, and provoking through insults, aiming to ensure the real issues are not discussed. You can see this from Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's statements and Devlet Bahçeli's speech today. When there is this much insult, it is very clear that those insults are being performed as a duty; there are two teleprompters used in this Parliament. If you follow the cables of both, they lead to a room in the palace. We are not going to stoop to their level.

Our concern is the pensioner's pension, the pot in the poor's kitchen, the fire in the markets and kitchens, and the living standards of minimum wage earners. TÜİK's figures are not accurate, but even with those figures, one must see how pathetic the situation is.

The richest 20 percent take half of the total, while the remaining 80 percent share the other portion. They have taken from the poor and given to the rich. When the Justice and Development Party came to power, the lowest pension was equal to today's minimum wage. Our nation sees this. Shame on those who take votes from pensioners and then raise their hands for 10 thousand liras. But this nation will hold those who leave it in poverty accountable. It will hold those who turn their backs on it accountable.

Our group told the pensioners, 'It is not enough, let it be 17 thousand TL,' while they said, '10 thousand TL is enough.'

While the vast majority of society is becoming impoverished, things are going well in the palace. The daily cost of the palace is 33.6 million liras. 23 thousand TL per minute. They consume the minimum wage in 40 seconds. They spend a pension in 27 seconds.

PENSION PAYMENTS

Last week, we stated a demand. We said that the lowest pension for our retirees should be at least equal to the minimum wage. Shame on those who voted against it, and kudos to our deputies who said let it be 17 thousand liras for the pensioner, and 25 thousand liras in the coming period. Continue with faith and effort. Continue to raise your hands in favor of the truth. Continue to support the laborers and low-income earners. This public sees everything. Your efforts will eventually find their reward when we go to the ballot box.

SIMIT TEA CALCULATION

Tayyip Erdoğan did a simit-tea calculation and asked for votes, saying 'shame on you.' Now let's look at the simit-tea calculation. Today in Ankara, a simit is 10 TL, tea is 15 TL. One tea and one simit is 25 TL. For a family of 5, we are calculating the lowest. 125 TL for one meal, 375 TL for 3 meals, and it becomes 11,250 TL in 30 days.

RESPONSE TO DEM PARTY CRITICISM

Since the election, gasoline has risen to 40 TL, and diesel has gone from 18 to 42 TL. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who said 'give the authority to your brother,' did this with the authority he received. This morning Devlet Bahçeli, last night Erdoğan... They have one sentence: DEM, DEM, DEM. By saying DEM, they are calculating how to make people forget inflation, hide price hikes, and win the election.

We have as much of a relationship with the DEM Party as we do with any other political party. It is just a glass of brewed tea we drink. They sit in Parliament, eat at the same table, and joke around, but when they get in front of the cameras, they start their hypocrisy.

Whatever the CHP's relationship with DEM is in the background, that is what it is in the foreground.

Bahçeli says DEM, Tayyip Bey raises prices. Mr. Bahçeli, the nation's problem is not DEM, it is the price hikes.

FEBRUARY 6 EARTHQUAKE

Next week is February 6. The anniversary of the great earthquake. Next week, we will be in the earthquake zone that affected our 11 provinces centered in Kahramanmaraş. We wish God's mercy upon all our citizens; our condolences to our nation.

They made the earthquake tax permanent, collected 40 million dollars in earthquake taxes, issued 8 zoning amnesties, and generated 26 billion in revenue from these amnesties, but did not use these resources for resilient cities; they used these resources to protect their own power...

We went through a period where there was no preparation for the earthquake. Especially in the first week, there was an incredible lack of coordination, and this lack of coordination caused incredible losses. We went through periods where the military was kept in barracks due to coup paranoia.

We went through processes where they sent IBANs to people's phones while the nation was waiting for socks, soup, and tents. We saw the Red Crescent selling tents when there were no tents.

They called it the 'disaster of the century,' but they left the nation to the 'loneliness of the century.'

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that all destroyed houses would be built and delivered within 1 year. 5 weeks after the earthquake, he said there was a need for 650 thousand houses in total; he said we will build 319 thousand houses in 1 year, which is an indicator that he shifted into reverse. The number of houses whose foundations were laid is 250 thousand, and the number of houses delivered is 47. He said he would deliver 46 thousand houses next week; the realized rate is 7 percent. We will not forget the earthquake; we will follow up on the promises made by those who gave them.

MARCH 31 ELECTIONS

We are heading toward local elections. This government ruined our cities. We had unsafe cities destroyed by earthquakes and floods. In 2019, there was a development. While flying in a helicopter and selling Istanbul's plots, when there were no plots left to sell, they said 'let's build a Bosphorus here.' Fortunately, the people of Istanbul stopped them. Ankara said stop to the mentality that sold Ankara parcel by parcel and found its way through dinosaur trade. In 11 cities, they said stop to waste and urban crimes. Since that day, our mayors elected by the CHP and the Nation Alliance, and even the Turkey Alliance, have been managing honestly.

If Erdoğan's municipalism manages Istanbul, they do half the work with twice the money. There is a 4-fold difference. We are challenging them. It used to rain and Üsküdar would become a lake. During the pandemic, they said we are doing unprecedented infrastructure work in Istanbul. Now they want to return to those cities. We destroyed the reign of the plunderers; are they saying let's return to the plunderers now? We tell all the big cities we hold: protect your hardworking mayors.

Those who ask 'what happened to the change' can look at the İzmir list. We announced 30 mayors. 9 are women, 12 are under 40. In the coming period, you will see lists with more women and young people. Throughout its history, the CHP had 6 mayors in İzmir. We want 9 out of 9. We evaluated Cemil Tugay as the team captain of our 30 friends. We will make the CHP the party of women and young people, just as Atatürk wanted.

TURKEY ALLIANCE

Mr. Bahçeli is uncomfortable with the 'Turkey Alliance.' Despite all kinds of games and all kinds of obstacles placed before the CHP, we believed in one thing; we believed in our people. Let them know this; we will continue to embrace those who declare peace to those who declare war on us, to only oppose the government to those who oppose the opposition, to embrace the most sincere voters of the opposition, to embrace the good people who are tired of the palace, surprised by what Bahçeli has done, and carry the sun on their lapels, to meet at the ballot box with those who are MHP members but are ashamed of these things and do not go to the polls, and to own the workers impoverished by the AK Party.

Mr. Erdoğan, you are an alliance of rent and interest. We are the Turkey Alliance. The CHP will embrace Turkey. The Turkey Alliance will win on March 31. Then the poor will win, we will win," he concluded.

News Source: 12punto