As 12punto first reported: Buğra Gökce to resign from his post at IMM for İzmir candidacy
IMM Deputy Secretary General Buğra Gökce will resign from his position at the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) to become a candidate for the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality mayoralty. 12punto was the first to report that Gökce would seek the nomination for İzmir.
12punto
There is less than 4 months left until the local elections to be held on March 31, 2024.
According to the decision of the Supreme Election Council (YSK), public officials must resign from their positions by 17:00 on Friday, December 1, in order to be candidates in the local elections.
GÖKCE TO RESIGN FROM HIS POST AT IMM TOMORROW
In line with this, it has been learned that IMM Deputy Secretary General Buğra Gökce will resign from his post tomorrow (December 1) to become a candidate for the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality mayoralty from the CHP.
FIRST REPORTED BY 12PUNTO
12punto was the first to report that Buğra Gökce, who served in the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality during both the Aziz Kocaoğlu and Tunç Soyer terms before coming to the IMM, would be a candidate for İzmir.
3 NAMES STAND OUT FOR İZMİR IN CHP
In the CHP, which has accelerated its local election efforts, current İzmir Metropolitan Mayor Tunç Soyer had stated, “I deserve to be nominated once more.” However, according to information obtained from behind-the-scenes sources, Soyer will not be nominated on March 31, 2024.
The names of Selin Sayek Böke, Murat Bakan, and Buğra Gökce were being discussed for İzmir within the CHP. 12punto had reported that the person who stood out the most among these 3 names was Buğra Gökce.
WHO IS BUĞRA GÖKCE?
Born in Ankara in 1974, Buğra Gökce graduated from the Department of City and Regional Planning at Gazi University Faculty of Architecture in 1995 and completed his master's degree in 2000.
After holding various management positions at the TMMOB Chamber of City Planners starting in 2002, Gökce became the General President of the Chamber between 2006 and 2007.
Gökce, who worked as a part-time lecturer at METU and Gazi universities from 2005 until 2014, was appointed as a member of the İzmir No. 2 Regional Board for the Protection of Cultural and Natural Heritage in 2008.
In 2007, Gökce received postgraduate training on planning and urban transportation investments in Japanese cities with a scholarship provided by the Japanese government. Gökce, who received his doctorate from the METU Department of City Planning in 2008, had his doctoral thesis, written in English, published by an international publishing house.
Buğra Gökce’s public service, which began at the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Zoning Department in 1996, continued until 2009. Gökce served as the President of the İzmir No. 2 Regional Board for the Protection of Cultural and Natural Heritage between 2009 and 2010.
After the 2009 local elections, Gökce resigned from civil service because his transfer from the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality to the Çankaya Municipality was not approved, and he began working at the Çankaya Municipality, where he served as the deputy mayor in charge of investments between 2010 and 2014.
Following the 2014 local elections, Gökce started working as the Head of the Department of Science Affairs at the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality and was appointed as Deputy Secretary General in October of the same year.
Gökce, who was appointed as the Secretary General of the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality on an acting basis in September 2016 and was appointed to the position on a permanent basis at the beginning of March 2017, a role he held until May 2022, took on the responsibility of managing the entire metropolitan area following the execution of infrastructure and superstructure projects and applications in İzmir.
On June 1, 2022, Gökce was appointed as Deputy Secretary General at the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. At the same time, Gökce served as the General Manager of IETT between February 2023 and July 2023.