Clear message from İmamoğlu to Erdoğan: 'Are you in?'

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor and CHP presidential candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu has sparked a new controversy following President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's speech at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine.

During the ceremony, Erdoğan criticized the IMM and, without naming him, İmamoğlu, claiming that the metropolitan municipality had been insufficient in city projects since 2019 and specifically stating that the Cerrahpaşa Museum of the History of Medicine had been neglected.

BALLOT BOX CALL: "ARE YOU IN?"

In response to the criticisms directed at him, İmamoğlu posted on social media, challenging President Erdoğan. In his response, İmamoğlu stated, "If you are so determined, let's go to a head-to-head election immediately in Istanbul, and then in Turkey, and compete," emphasizing that the decision should be made by the nation.

İmamoğlu said the following:

"I read Mr. Erdoğan's insincere criticisms and ridiculous excuses with a smile. You are the one who forced Topbaş, whom you now praise, out of office; you are the one who canceled the 2019 election with fabricated excuses; you are the one who arrested your opponent with the March 19 coup in 2025. Let's see who is protecting Atatürk's legacy, the republic, democracy, justice, state principles, and the future of our 86 million citizens in Turkey? Let our nation decide. Are you in?"

CRITICISMS OVER THE CERRAHPAŞA MUSEUM OF THE HISTORY OF MEDICINE

During the ceremony, President Erdoğan stated that the Cerrahpaşa Museum of the History of Medicine houses rare artifacts from the Republican and Ottoman eras, and recalled that a protocol had been prepared for the museum during the term of former IMM Mayor Kadir Topbaş. In his statement, Erdoğan said, "What happened after 2019? What happened to Istanbul also happened to the protocol. It became a victim of the politics of not laying foundations, not doing work, and producing excuses. Those who do not let Atatürk's name fall from their lips when it comes to politics did not protect either Gazi Mustafa Kemal's legacy or the Museum of the History of Medicine."

News Source: 12punto