Mansur Yavaş speaks on Erdal Beşikçioğlu's candidacy: 'I had no knowledge of it'

Mansur Yavaş, the CHP's candidate for Ankara Metropolitan Mayor, answered questions regarding his performance to date as well as the upcoming election. Yavaş addressed the controversies surrounding Burcu Köksal and also spoke about the candidacy of actor Erdal Beşikçioğlu.

Here are the statements made by Mansur Yavaş:

'IT IS NOT THAT I DID NOT WANT ERDAL BEŞİKÇİOĞLU, I HAD NO KNOWLEDGE OF HIS CANDIDACY'

Candaş Tolga Işık: Reports emerged suggesting that you were not in favor of, or even opposed to, Erdal Beşikçioğlu's candidacy for Etimesgut. Did you truly not want Erdal Beşikçioğlu to be the candidate?

Mansur Yavaş: It is not that I did not want him; I simply had no knowledge of Mr. Erdal's candidacy. I had only suggested another name; otherwise, I have known Mr. Erdal for a long time. We supported his series because they promote Ankara. He is a person we like.

'I BELIEVE MR. ERDAL WILL BE SUCCESSFUL BECAUSE HE IS EAGER'

CTI: Do you think Mr. Erdal will be a successful mayor? How do you view the criticisms regarding popular figures entering politics?

MY: Everyone has an opinion, and I cannot comment on those, but just as politics is open to anyone who wants to engage in it, it should also be open to artists. Because they don't become artists for nothing. They are people who have gained public appreciation through certain qualities. I believe Mr. Erdal will also be successful because he is willing. Furthermore, his demeanor, partly due to his roles in films, has been well-received by the public. I hope he acts in the same way.

'I ALSO SPOKE WITH MS. BURCU, OUR DOORS ARE OPEN TO EVERYONE IN AFYON'

CTI: If you are re-elected as mayor, will you say that your doors are open to everyone except the DEM Party?

MY: I have served as mayor for 5 years, and I have never closed my door to anyone. You may not like their views, you may be angry, you can say anything, but once elected, 

you collect taxes from everyone and govern on their behalf. If you discriminate against any individual after doing so, it constitutes a violation of public trust.

'TWO TERMS ARE SUFFICIENT FOR A MAYOR'

CTI: You made a statement saying, 'This is my final term.' You made the same statement in 2019. Why are you running again this term after saying that back then, and why did you decide not to run for the next term?

MY: Yes, at one point I said, 'I will show what real municipalism is and then step down.' The most important reason for changing my mind was our 2.5-year loss during the pandemic period. Due to both the decrease in revenues and the 2 years of intensive work, we were unable to complete many of the projects we had started. 

'THIS INDIVIDUAL HAS LOST THEIR MENTAL HEALTH'

CTI: Have you heard Cengiz (Topel) Bey's statement that '5 billion 928 million TL that should be in the municipal treasury is missing'?

MY: I haven't heard any such thing, and not a single penny of the municipality goes missing. We are the ones who publish all our expenditures on our website in Turkey, and we also publish the Court of Accounts' criticisms. We have certified public accountants in our companies. We are audited by the Court of Accounts and by inspectors. We have neither heard nor seen such an allegation until now. How could such a thing be possible? This person has lost their mental health.

“Cengiz Topel Yıldırım CAME AND ASKED ME FOR THE MAMAK MAYORALTY”

MY: Cengiz Topel Yıldırım came to me and asked for the Mamak Mayoralty. When we didn't give it to him, he started going on all the television channels just to smear Mansur Yavaş.

CTI: Is this during the election period?

MY: Yes. If Mansur Yavaş is the wrong man and is involved in corruption, why would you want to work with me?

CTI: Why didn't you accept it?

MY: What am I supposed to accept? Am I obligated to accept it?