Breaking News: Prison and political ban sought: İmamoğlu's first statement after expert witness indictment! Here is his message to Erdoğan

The expert witness investigation launched against Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu has been completed.

In the prepared indictment, a prison sentence of 2 to 4 years and a political ban were requested for İmamoğlu on charges of "Attempting to Influence a Judicial Officer, Expert Witness, or Witness."

"THE PRESIDENT WANTS TO SIDELINE ME IN POLITICS"

IMM Mayor İmamoğlu, who attended a groundbreaking ceremony in Istanbul, made statements to journalists.

Reacting to the indictment prepared against him, İmamoğlu said, "The name of the person making the effort to sideline me in politics is clear. It is the President."

İmamoğlu said, "TÜSİAD has spoken, and will speak. If I were in TÜSİAD's place, I would speak for every member among them. Let's say they don't speak; they would have to walk around with their heads bowed in front of society."

'I INVITE HIM TO THE ARENA FAIRLY, TO THE BALLOT BOX'

In a post on his X account after answering questions from members of the press, İmamoğlu stated, "The signature of the President is under the cases where a 25-year prison sentence is sought against me, not anyone else's; you cannot fool anyone. I invite him to the arena fairly, to the ballot box. Let him behave like a Kasımpaşa native and stop playing dirty tricks through the judiciary with Byzantine games. This nation loves those who are brave and honorable."

Hakkımda 25 yıl hapis cezası istenen davaların altında Sayın Cumhurbaşkanının imzası vardır, başkasının değil, kimseyi kandıramazsınız. Kendisini mertçe mindere, sandığa davet ediyorum. Kasımpaşalı gibi davransın, Bizans oyunlarıyla yargı aracılığıyla ayak oyunları yapmayı…

— Ekrem İmamoğlu (@ekrem_imamoglu) February 17, 2025

Highlights from İmamoğlu's speech are as follows:

"I am currently a person being tried with an indictment or court process regarding a fifth political ban and again a prison sentence exceeding 25 years. None of these courts or indictments in question, let alone being an indictment, are even worth writing down. In this sense, I know that the people signing off on these matters in the judiciary are not the ones behind it. The name of the person making the effort to sideline me in politics is clear. It is the President... The President has made these moves several times since 2019, has tried them, and has normalized them.

In 2019, he damaged Turkey's democracy with his speeches from that day to this, even going so far as to say, 'Do you think you will win the election in Istanbul with 13 thousand votes?' in order to keep the Supreme Election Council (YSK) under influence. Unfortunately, he has negatively affected Turkey's legal system, and things have come to this point today.

He is still continuing his struggle in this field. I am here. In the arena of honor, one wrestles fairly. The place for fairness is the ballot box. Elections can be won or lost; I have invited him to fairness many times. But the preference is different. They are the ones talking about 'radishes in the bag,' they are the ones acting as the prosecutor for all these processes, and they express this in their own language. But then, he is also the one who makes unfortunate, bad statements about the process, saying, 'It doesn't concern me, this is the judiciary's business.'

The President is behind all of this. I am not saying it; he says it himself.

He is the one talking about the radishes in the bag. He says I should be punished. He threatens people.

I don't care about the indictments at all; they are meaningless to me."