Show of force by İmamoğlu and Yavaş at Çağlayan Courthouse: Another election message to the government

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu made statements after giving his testimony at the Istanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan as part of two separate investigations launched against him.

İmamoğlu spoke from atop a bus in front of the courthouse.

Here are İmamoğlu's statements:

There is no political party that is not here. This is the greatest source of pride for me. Because, while I might make a mistake if I list them one by one, today, all political parties except the ruling party are here... They came to defend justice, to support us in the establishment of justice. Because, in truth, the will of 16 million people should not have had to give such a statement.

Today's issue is a matter of justice, today's issue is a matter of seeking rights, today's issue is our future. We are experiencing the highest level of judicial harassment in Istanbul, but we have not been intimidated, and we will not be. We will continue to fight against injustice and lawlessness.

Starting in Esenyurt, with our professor Ahmet Özer being dragged away and thrown into prison at the crack of dawn, and continuing with the process of our brother Rıza Akpolat in Beşiktaş being unjustly arrested and removed from his post, this effort to design the process through the judiciary continues.

Of course, we are in a spirit of great solidarity today. As I said, all of our political parties are here. I even know that their chairmen have contributed to us. I thank each and every one of them from the bottom of my heart for the survival of this glorious state of the Republic of Turkey, for the unity and solidarity of our nation, and I convey my gratitude.

Of course, my political companions are here today; our fellow administrators from both our Istanbul and different parts of our country are here. We are in an environment where everyone, from the highest level of our party to its members, has contributed. I also thank our fellow travelers in our party who are always by our side, and all our administrators, and I convey my gratitude.

I thank my dear friend and elder brother, Mansur Yavaş, who showed that we are together by saying, 'If the issue is the homeland, the rest is detail.'

Following IMM Mayor İmamoğlu, the statements of Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mansur Yavaş are as follows:

LET'S CLOSE SILIVRI

First of all, I wish you a speedy recovery. The law must always prevail. They want to turn Turkey into an open-air prison. From now on, no one should be arrested for what they write.

After we come to power, let's close Silivri.

WHAT HAPPENED?

Two separate investigations had been opened against İmamoğlu in the last 11 days due to the speeches he made.

It was stated that the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office had sent a summons for İmamoğlu to give a statement regarding the investigations in question and that his lawyer had been called.

An investigation was launched against İmamoğlu on Monday, January 20, for 'targeting those tasked with fighting threats and terrorism' while he was speaking at a panel titled "Modern Law and the Politicization of the Judiciary" at the Country Policies Foundation.

Here, İmamoğlu used the following words regarding Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor Akın Gürlek:

Look, Chief Prosecutor, I am telling you. We will be of no use to you, your mind has rotted anyway... We will rip the mind that governs you out of this nation's consciousness, even to save your own children from these treatments. Do not forget this. We will rip it out so that no one shows up at your children's door, so that no one takes your children from their home at the crack of dawn. We will rip the paths and methods that pass through your mentality out of every environment in this country so that we can ensure peace for your home and your children's future as well. This is our concern.

Minutes after he said these words, an investigation was opened against İmamoğlu during the panel.

On January 27, another investigation was opened. Referring to President Tayyip Erdoğan's statement "The biggest radish is in the bag" following the arrest of Beşiktaş Mayor Rıza Akpolat, İmamoğlu held a press conference titled "The Biggest Radish" on Monday morning and mentioned an expert witness.

İmamoğlu had pointed to an expert witness in some investigations carried out against the IMM, Esenyurt and Beşiktaş municipalities, and himself.

Following his statements regarding the expert witness, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation against İmamoğlu on the allegation of "attempting to influence those performing judicial duties by targeting the expert witness on duty in some investigations."

İmamoğlu came to the Istanbul Courthouse to give a statement as part of the two separate investigations launched against him. It was learned that the prosecutor who was to take İmamoğlu's statement was changed hours before the testimony time. İmamoğlu's testimony process began at 10:20 and ended at 11:40. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of people gathered in front of the courthouse to support İmamoğlu. Police intervened against the gathered crowd with pepper spray and batons.

News Source: 12punto