Infighting within the government grows: After Mehmet Şimşek, the next target is Ali Yerlikaya!

On Tvnet, the television channel of the Yeni Şafak group, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya was targeted through his advisor, Prof. Dr. Ergün Yolcu. While criticizing Yerlikaya, Yeni Şafak columnist İsmail Kılıçarslan drew attention to Yolcu's past and questioned his role during the February 28 process.

KILIÇARSLAN'S "EMOJI MINISTER" CRITICISM OF YERLIKAYA

In the program on Tvnet, İsmail Kılıçarslan described Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya as the "emoji minister" and said the following:

"What is Ali Yerlikaya, brother? Ali Yerlikaya has turned into a giant emoji. Everyone is making fun of him, calling him the emoji minister. Look, they are mocking him as the emoji minister. What is an emoji minister, brother?"

Targeting Yerlikaya's communications advisor Prof. Dr. Ergün Yolcu as well, Kılıçarslan stated, "A courageous Yeni Şafak reporter is needed to investigate what that communications professor did on February 28." These remarks drew attention as criticisms specifically questioning the past of both Yerlikaya and Yolcu.

The past of Prof. Dr. Ergün Yolcu was also questioned on the pro-government Yeni Şafak group's channel, Tvnet, and in Kılıçarslan's statements. Who Yolcu is and what kind of positions he has held have become a subject of curiosity. Ergün Yolcu, who was appointed as an advisor upon Ali Yerlikaya taking office, is known as an academic who served as a faculty member and administrator at Istanbul University's Faculty of Communication for many years.

The name of Prof. Dr. Ergün Yolcu had previously been the subject of various media controversies. Yeni Şafak, which published the news of Berat Albayrak's resignation from the Ministry of Treasury and Finance 17 hours later, had continued its criticisms of Albayrak. During a period when Yeni Şafak columnist Aydın Ünal was criticizing Albayrak's economic policies, the headlines in the newspaper had similarly targeted certain government policies.

WHO IS ERGÜN YOLCU?

Prof. Dr. Ergün Yolcu was born on May 26, 1967, in Çıldır. After completing his undergraduate education at Istanbul University's Faculty of Letters, Yolcu completed his master's and doctorate at the same university's Faculty of Communication. Yolcu began his career as a Research Assistant at the IU Faculty of Communication in 1994 and eventually attained the titles of Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Professor.

Prof. Dr. Yolcu has served in various media organizations and also worked as a General Manager Specialist and Advisor at the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT). Additionally, he has held significant positions in fields such as corporate communications and public relations at Istanbul University.

Prof. Dr. Yolcu is also a well-known name in documentary production and direction. In 2011, he directed the "Istanbul University from 1453 to the Present" documentary, which was among the Istanbul 2010 European Capital of Culture projects. He also won the Social Responsibility Award at the 2015 Antalya Film Festival with his short film titled "I Am on a Long and Narrow Road." The short documentary titled "Shelter," directed by Yolcu, was screened at the 2016 Antalya Film Festival.

CRITICISMS ON THE AGENDA AND GOVERNMENT INFIGHTING

The criticisms directed at Ali Yerlikaya in Yeni Şafak also revealed the extent of the infighting within the government. Journalist Barış Terkoğlu, in his statement on Onlar TV, noted that the infighting within the ruling camp is increasing and drew attention to the tensions between Şimşek and Canikli. Furthermore, it was stated that the infighting in the ruling camp is growing and that Yerlikaya is also a part of these disputes.

INFIGHTING IN THE RULING CAMP

Journalist İsmail Arı said in a post on Twitter, "Pro-government Yeni Şafak criticized the government from the front page again. They had targeted Mehmet Şimşek first, then Ali Yerlikaya. It seems the infighting in the ruling camp is growing."