Öztrak speaks on İmamoğlu not signing for Kılıçdaroğlu's candidacy: 'His own discretion'

Faik Öztrak, addressing claims that Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu did not sign for Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's candidacy for the chairmanship at the ordinary party congress, stated, "There is democracy in the CHP. No one can place a mortgage on the will of the delegates. Delegates are free. Mr. Ekrem is also one of our party's 1,368 delegates; it is his own discretion."

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Öztrak speaks on İmamoğlu not signing for Kılıçdaroğlu's candidacy: 'His own discretion'

The CHP Central Executive Board (MYK) met at the party headquarters under the chairmanship of Chairman Kılıçdaroğlu.

Making a statement regarding the meeting, CHP Deputy Chairman and Party Spokesperson Faik Öztrak stated that the Republic means the will of the nation is above everything else, and that it is the first and most important step on the path of democracy, which is being woven stitch by stitch.

''NO ONE CAN PLACE A MORTGAGE ON THE WILL''

Following his statement, when asked by a member of the press, "It is being discussed that among the 11 CHP metropolitan mayors, only Ekrem İmamoğlu did not sign for CHP Chairman Kılıçdaroğlu's congress candidacy. What is your assessment of this?", CHP Spokesperson Öztrak replied, "There is democracy in the CHP. No one can place a mortgage on the will of the delegates. Delegates are free. Mr. Ekrem is also one of our party's 1,368 delegates; it is his own discretion."

100TH ANNIVERSARY CRITICISM

Arguing that the government has let the 100th anniversary of the Republic pass in a "common, ordinary" way, Öztrak claimed that the preparations and events that were held during important anniversaries of the Republic and that left a mark on history were absent for the 100th anniversary.

Emphasizing that celebrating the 100th anniversary properly is an honor that will not be granted to every generation, Öztrak said, "This excitement is a great opportunity to keep alive our common ground and our unity, which we need today. But an administration that builds its politics on dividing the nation rather than uniting it has squandered such a great opportunity."

''FOREIGN POLICY IS BEING USED AS A TOOL FOR DOMESTIC POLITICS''

Öztrak stated that the nation and the CHP are celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Republic with enthusiasm and in a manner befitting it.

Criticizing the government's policy on the Israel-Palestine conflict, Öztrak argued that foreign policy is being used as a tool for domestic politics.

Öztrak said, "In our view, whoever does it, wherever it comes from, every attack targeting innocent children, women, and civilians is terrorism. When we evaluate terrorism, we look at what is done, not who does it. There can be no justifiable reason for terrorism. Neither a cause nor a response to an attack justifies terrorism."

"OUR CURRENCY CONTINUES TO BECOME WORTHLESS AGAINST THE DOLLAR"

Stating that young people are trying to study and build their futures, Öztrak claimed that the government cannot provide young people with proper dormitories or proper nutrition opportunities, and that most university students are forced to work.

Expressing that a country that cannot look after, embrace, or give hope to its youth cannot look to its future with hope, Öztrak said that according to the Development Plan currently being discussed in Parliament, one in every five young people will still be neither in education nor in employment in 2028.

Criticizing the government's economic policy, Öztrak argued that the government has tied the lifeblood of the economy to money coming from abroad, and has exacerbated the current account deficit and external debt.

Stating that the policy interest rate in Turkey has increased more than fourfold in the four months since the elections, Öztrak noted the following:

"In the same period, the policy interest rate in most countries similar to ours either fell or remained stable. It only rose in a few countries, for example in Russia, which is at war. In other words, there is no aspect of the interest rate hike in our country that can be explained by global developments. The interest rate in Russia is 13 percent today, one-third of our policy interest rate. We are currently the country with the highest interest rates in the world after Argentina, Zimbabwe, and Venezuela. Despite the 500 basis point increase made last week, our currency continues to become worthless against the dollar."

Öztrak said that as long as the government uses foreign policy as material for domestic politics, stability cannot be achieved in the economy.

News Source: AA