Worker arrested for unfurling 'AKP is the cause, inflation is the result' banner while Erdoğan was speaking

According to information obtained, during an opening ceremony held on Saturday, April 19, N.K. threw his mobile phone toward the platform where President and AKP Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was speaking and unfurled banners reading "AK Party is the cause, inflation is the result" and "Do not use God's religion, Reis."

N.K., who was detained by security personnel, was taken to the police station and subsequently arrested by the Istanbul 6th Criminal Court of Peace.

"THINKING THERE IS AN INCREDIBLE ECONOMIC HARDSHIP IN THE COUNTRY..."

The textile worker, who stated that he had previously engaged in similar protest actions twice in front of the AKP Istanbul Provincial Headquarters, said in his statement that he "thought there was an incredible economic hardship in the country" and added, "I wanted to explain the hardship I have been experiencing because of the individuals and institutions governing the country, our President, and the AK Party government. I decided to attend the rally because I could not find another way to reach our President. I have absolutely no intention of harming our President. I threw my phone into the gap between the platform and where I was standing, not to harm our President, but only so that he would hear and see me. The purpose of unfurling the banner afterward was, as I said, to draw attention to myself and explain that there are economic hardships."

"DO NOT USE GOD'S RELIGION"

It was noted that N.K. explained the purpose of the banner reading 'Do not use God's religion, Reis' in his statement by saying, "We live in a Muslim country; in Islam, the wealthy segment should also think about the public experiencing economic hardships, and I believe that income inequality should be eliminated to some extent. The purpose of writing these was to seek a solution to economic hardship and high inflation." It was also reported that N.K.'s lawyer requested his release at the court, stating, "It will be clear in the file that he did not commit any act related to simple assault. He threw the phone into the space between the platforms. The material elements of the crime of insulting the President have not been formed. My client wanted to make himself heard due to the economic hardships he is in. He has a fixed residence and there is no suspicion of flight. The evidence has been collected, and there is no suspicion of tampering with evidence."

WHAT DID ERDOĞAN SAY?

President and AKP Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke at the opening ceremony of the Bağcılar Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital regarding the controversy that began after a football club took the field with a banner about natural birth, saying, "Our club took a very innocent, very correct, and appropriate step. Upon this, the well-known circles immediately took action. First, they lynched our athletes and our football club. Then they targeted our Ministry of Health, which is running the project. Then they directed their arrows of criticism at our government and ourselves. We ask those who have been causing an uproar for a week with extremely ugly expressions: Why does our Ministry's encouragement of natural birth and promoting natural birth instead of surgical intervention bother you so much?" Erdoğan also praised the 23-year health system with the following words:

"We have brought to our country a modern health infrastructure that many countries in the world take as an example and come to examine. With our family doctors, polyclinics, and hospitals, we are at a level that could not even be imagined 23 years ago, with all kinds of tools and equipment using the most advanced technology. Of course, there may be some deficiencies and disruptions in some places. But we are making intense efforts to resolve complaints there as well. We have mobilized our resources so that our people can receive the best health services. Our guide in politics is clear. The state exists for the nation. The state exists to serve its citizens.

Our brothers and sisters under the age of 30 naturally do not remember the period before 2002. Thank God, our youth do not know those bad days when finding a queue was a separate trouble, medicine was a separate trouble, and treatment was a separate trouble. They cannot comprehend today why our people used to be filled with anxiety when health or hospitals were mentioned. I would like to share some figures with you here very briefly. In the 23 years we have left behind, a revolution has literally taken place in health services in our country. The figures prove this revolution in an undeniable way. We have increased our total number of hospitals to 1,547 by building 391 new hospitals across our country."

News Source: 12punto