Ekrem İmamoğlu's first comment on AKP candidate Murat Kurum

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu made statements regarding the March 2024 elections and his rival Murat Kurum.

Noting that alliances were clearer in the local elections held five years ago, İmamoğlu said, "It is a fact that there is a more difficult arithmetic or ground compared to the previous election; at that time, alliances were in a clearer position, whereas now, the preferences of political parties are in a different position."

WILL THERE BE AN ISTANBUL ALLIANCE?

Speaking to Reuters, İmamoğlu said, "But I am not sure if the preferences of the people who vote for them will change or evolve at the same rate as the preferences of the political parties. Because one should not forget that the alliance formed at that time at the local level was largely matured by the people living in Istanbul," and added:

"This great alliance that matured this process in Istanbul, the Istanbul alliance... I think it gave people a tremendous taste. Now, if Ekrem İmamoğlu passes the test of those five years well, I think it can become even stronger."

İmamoğlu said, "In other words, whether the direction drawn by political parties or the direction pulled by society based on their sensitivity to this alliance will be effective, we will see in this race."

EMPHASIS ON THE 2019 ELECTIONS

Noting that democracy and justice have regressed in Turkey over the years, İmamoğlu said, "In such a process, a breaking point occurred in Turkey regarding local and general elections, and that was the year 2019."

In the local elections held in March 2019, Istanbul candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu finished the race ahead of the AKP's candidate, former Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım, but the election, which was canceled by the Supreme Election Council (YSK), was repeated on June 23, 2019. İmamoğlu won the repeated elections by a larger margin.

İmamoğlu continued as follows:

"While the government's success continued in the general election, a breaking point was experienced in the local election. I think this is actually a struggle for democracy, a different perspective, integration, being together, and thinking together rather than polarization in Turkey."

Noting that the upcoming local election contains many messages for the opposition regarding the continuation of this, İmamoğlu said, "It is not an election where a one-sided loss interpretation can be made."

"WE MADE SUGGESTIONS TO ERDOĞAN"

Expressing that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has a perspective on Istanbul that is "heated, oppressive, dismissive, and somewhat ignoring," and based on a completely anti-democratic attitude despite losing two consecutive elections in 2019, İmamoğlu said, "He is the one who causes this. We have always made suggestions, saying 'Let's talk and discuss Istanbul together. You are the president of this country, and we are the mayor of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality,' but he did not make that choice."

Pointing out that Erdoğan acts with the feeling that something belonging to him has been taken from him, İmamoğlu said that Istanbul is a city that belongs to 16 million people and even to humanity.

MURAT KURUM COMMENT

When asked what his chances would be against the IMM mayoral candidate Murat Kurum, whom Erdoğan announced over the weekend, İmamoğlu replied:

"I do not categorize my chances as before or after Murat Kurum; I am as lucky today as I was before."

Yesterday, while announcing his party's 10 metropolitan mayoral candidates for the local elections to be held on March 31, Erdoğan announced that their candidate for Istanbul is Murat Kurum.

"WE SIDESTEPPED OBSTACLES AND PROVIDED SERVICE"

İmamoğlu noted that during the five years they have managed Istanbul, they have produced services by sidestepping financial, administrative, and implementation-related obstacles, despite the government's pressures and obstructions, which were unprecedented in history.

Stating that they continue by overcoming some of their financing difficulties, İmamoğlu noted that there are investments that are still not signed and are waiting for approval to be set in motion, and one of them is the Sefaköy-Beylikdüzü metro line.

Stating that they have achieved significant success in metro investments, İmamoğlu said, "I would have liked to start the Sefaköy-Beylikdüzü metro in a way that we could act faster with a signature we received."

Within the scope of the Sefaköy-Beylikdüzü metro project, which has a total cost of 700 million dollars, a total of 250 million euros in financing has been committed by the EBRD and AFD, while negotiations continue with the European Investment Bank for the remaining part.

News Source: 12punto