Özgür Özel praises concrete development, resignations follow from CHP! 'They sold off our coasts'

As the local elections approach, an earthquake of resignations has hit the Republican People's Party (CHP) in Antalya.

During a rally held in the Gazipaşa district of Antalya in recent days, CHP Chairman Özgür Özel thanked Gazipaşa Mayor Mehmet Ali Yılmaz for the zoning regulations that have opened the Gazipaşa coasts to rent-seeking and will turn the beach into a pile of concrete.

According to the report by Yusuf Yavuz; this speech by Özel led to the resignation of party members who have been striving to prevent the concrete development of the Gazipaşa coasts. Dr. Ali Kızılateş, a CHP Gazipaşa mayoral candidate hopeful, and Esin Bilgiç, a high-architect and member of the CHP Gazipaşa and Metropolitan Municipal Council, announced their resignations from the party, criticizing Özgür Özel's speech.

Yusuf Yavuz reported the behind-the-scenes of these resignations as follows;

"The Gazipaşa coasts contain natural areas in the eastern part of Antalya that have been protected from concrete development as much as possible. The Selinus, Kâhyalar, and Koru beaches have been targets for both zoning rent and 5-star hotel investors in recent years. The desire to open the Selinus beach, which is a protected area, to mass tourism has drawn reactions from a significant portion of the district's residents. Arguing that mass tourism will bring concrete development and leave the beach at the mercy of corporations, the local residents advocate for the promotion of eco-tourism instead of large hotels.

CHP MAYOR TOOK SIDES TO OPEN THE COASTS TO HOTELS

However, Mehmet Ali Yılmaz, who was elected Mayor of Gazipaşa from the CHP in the 2019 local elections, has taken sides in favor of opening the coast to hotel investors since the day he took office. The first 5-star hotel project on the Selinus coast was the project of tourism operator Adil Üstündağ, who has been collecting land in the region for years. While the EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment) process was initiated for the 2,508-bed capacity hotel project that Adil Üstündağ, who claims to be the mastermind behind the lightbulb in the AKP emblem, wanted to build on more than 50 thousand decares of land on the Selinus coast, the holding of a public participation meeting in the district during the days of the February 6 earthquakes was met with backlash.

LOCAL RESIDENTS EXPOSED DEFICIENCIES, EIA PROCESS HALTED

CHP Gazipaşa Mayor Mehmet Ali Yılmaz had drawn criticism for acting like a public relations officer for Adil Üstündağ by making statements targeting many citizens in the district who opposed the massive hotel projects that would turn the coast into concrete. When it was revealed through the efforts of platform volunteers that even the area designated as a daily-use zone on the Selinus coast was being included in the hotel project, and that there were deficiencies in the EIA report prepared for the project, the EIA process was halted last January.

ÖZGÜR ÖZEL THANKED FOR PROJECTS THAT WILL TURN THE COAST INTO CONCRETE

CHP Chairman Özgür Özel attended a rally in Gazipaşa the other day. Speaking at the rally, which was also attended by Antalya Metropolitan Mayor and CHP candidate Muhittin Böcek and Provincial Chairman Nail Kamacı, Özel thanked Mayor Mehmet Ali Yılmaz for the zoning regulations that will serve as a foundation for projects that will turn the district's coast into concrete.

ÖZEL: 'GAZİPAŞA WILL SMILE THANKS TO THESE WORKS'

Stating that there are no hotels with tourism licenses in Gazipaşa, CHP leader Özel said, "Despite it being such a beautiful place. While we boast about having the district with the most hotels in the world in Manavgat, hotel investments will now come here after this Article 18 application. Domestic tourists will come, foreign tourists will come, and Gazipaşa will smile thanks to these works. While thanking our mayor for this beautiful work, I also want to draw the attention of all investors to Gazipaşa."

ÖZEL'S PRAISE FOR CONCRETE DEVELOPMENT LED TO RESIGNATIONS FROM THE PARTY

This speech by CHP leader Özgür Özel led to the resignation of prominent party figures who have been resisting zoning rent and the concrete development of the coast in the district for years.

Dr. Ali Kızılateş, who has been involved in politics within the CHP for years and was among the mayoral candidate hopefuls for Gazipaşa for the March 31, 2024 local elections, announced his resignation from his party, harshly criticizing the expressions in Chairman Özgür Özel's speech.

'CHP OFFICIALS SHOULD NEVER AGAIN SAY AKBELEN, KAZ MOUNTAINS, İLİÇ'

Kızılateş's statement is as follows:

"Small calculations at the local level, the small-town politician mentality might be understandable; but providing support at the level of the chairman for the rent-seeking, savage tourism mentality, and the concreting of the coasts in Gazipaşa, and presenting this plunder and looting as development-progress is neither understandable nor acceptable. Is this the mentality that will protect our land, our sea, our agricultural fields, our villagers, our farmers, our natural beauties, our historical and cultural values, and the Kuvayı Milliye? Is this the mentality that will pursue an anti-imperialist policy? CHP officials and deputies should never again say Akbelen, Kaz Mountains-İliç-Phaselis-Ulualan, environment, or rent-plunder. I wish Mr. Özel had received a little information from the CHP deputies from Manavgat, Aliye Coşar and Mustafa Erdem, who are right next to him, about what savage tourism has brought to their districts and how satisfied the people of Manavgat are."

(The land selected for the hotel on the Selinus Coast covers an area of more than 50 thousand square meters.)

'I CONDEMN ÖZGÜR ÖZEL'S DISRESPECT FOR THE STRUGGLE'

I condemn Özgür Özel's disrespect for the extraordinary struggle that has been waged for 4 years for the coasts and beaches of Gazipaşa to belong to the public. I reject these statements by Mr. Özgür Özel that support the pro-capital, rent-seeking mentality that will drown our coasts in concrete, and as of today, I am resigning from my (Y)CHP membership. My commitment to Atatürk's CHP; that is, to the founding values and republican revolutions, will continue until I die."

(The people of Gazipaşa had held numerous protests and press statements to prevent the concrete development of the coast)

'THOSE WHO HAPPILY SOLD OFF OUR COASTS'

In his resignation statement, Kızılateş, who also included the analogy of "Gazipaşa coasts are the yellow ox," said, "Those who happily sold off our natural beauties and our coasts for rent; should be prepared for our villages, forests, and plateaus to be easily taken away again for the sake of rent tomorrow. Therefore, regardless of which political party or view they belong to, I invite the sensitive people of Gazipaşa not to give up the yellow ox."

(Banana production is carried out in the open in the agricultural fields on the coast that have been opened to hotel investments.)

CHP'S METROPOLITAN COUNCIL MEMBER BİLGİÇ ALSO RESIGNED

Following Dr. Ali Kızılateş, CHP's Gazipaşa and Metropolitan Municipal Council Member Architect Esin Bilgiç also announced her resignation from her party. Criticizing Chairman Özgür Özel's speech, Bilgiç argued that "politics should be done for the public interest."

Stating that she had previously conveyed the problems regarding the issue to the party's headquarters officials but did not receive a result, Bilgiç stated that the speech Özgür Özel made at the Gazipaşa rally was the final straw, and expressed the following in her statement regarding her resignation:

'WE DID NOT USE OUR DIPLOMAS FOR PURPLE THOUSANDS'

"To the attention of our valuable public: As in the call; if we had wanted to, we would have used our diplomas like promissory notes that bring purple thousands. We were architects, engineers, doctors, lawyers... We didn't use them... We said let agricultural fields be protected, we said let thousands of decares of agricultural land not be opened to zoning under the name of 'plan revision'. We said let pastures be protected while their qualifications were being changed. We said let the independent parcels belonging to our municipality not be sold. We said let the most valuable corner in the largest park of the district, which is named after Atatürk, not be turned into a commercial area after first being a public service area. We said let all the liens on the municipality's real estate not be gathered in the most valuable place belonging to our municipality by the seaside, which Mr. Özgür Özel also mentioned the value of in his speech in our district yesterday, and let this not be the first place to be sold off in a possible trouble (!). We did not vote in favor of this in the council either. Even though it was seen in the council records that I did not raise my hand, they recorded it as unanimous in the minutes."

'I SUBMITTED PETITIONS TO THE MUNICIPALITY AND PROVINCIAL ORGANIZATION, IT WAS NOT CORRECTED'

I submitted petitions to the municipality, the district organization, and the provincial chairmanship explaining the dangers I think this very valuable municipal land is waiting for, and requesting that my vote be corrected; the result of the voting was not corrected. Again, we reacted when our Nursery land, which is treasury land by the seaside, was being parceled out and put up for allocation by misleading the construction rate. We said that 10-story construction in places with 3 and 4 floors in the district's zoning plan is very wrong, the district is finishing, we submitted a petition, they rejected it. We said a wrong planning is being carried out on our coasts. We said these coasts are protected areas. We said giant hotels are seizing the public's daily-use areas. We said this planning will harm the district's semi-tropical climate, there is no fragmented construction, sea air will not reach agricultural fields, and the public will not be able to reach the coasts. We said the habitats of many living things other than humans will disappear. We said that while healthy food will be the most important problem in the coming days, these giant masses will destroy agricultural fields. We said these tiny three beaches cannot handle so many giant masses in a row. We said this planning, which was suspended during this period, should have been objected to, and a lawsuit should have been filed in time."

'OWNING THE DESTRUCTION SHOWS HOW THE CHP HAS DRIFTED'

We said there should be a tourism in Gazipaşa based on its culture and natural data, intertwined with agriculture, and the public should earn the tourism income. We didn't just say these things. We said them together with our professional chambers, the bar association, and environmental associations. We made our voices heard through press statements, through our valuable press, and through news in the national press. All sensitive hearts also became a voice to our voice. We stopped the EIA process of the first giant hotel, for which the Gazipaşa Municipality gave a positive opinion, in Ankara due to its deficiencies and mistakes with a handful of friends. Even the relevant ministry had to hear this voice, but unfortunately, the elected officials of my party, to which I am connected by essence, did not hear this voice, this cry rising from the district. They insisted on not hearing. Despite the scientific and technical truths we have been trying to explain for 4.5 years, owning all this destruction at the chairman level in our district yesterday shows how the Republican People's Party has drifted on environmental issues."

'ZONING FOR TROPICAL PRODUCTION AREA, APPLAUSE FOR TROPICAL PARK'

You will say 'We will not let Ulualan become a dead area' in Manavgat, okay this is very good, but you will have the seizure of even the public's daily-use areas in Gazipaşa applauded. Yesterday in our district, at the Chairman level, an unfortunate speech was made that supports the concrete tourism that will come, inviting investors to this planning, despite the dangers awaiting Gazipaşa's coasts and the district, which still preserves its naturalness without being spoiled. The tropical park that was opened: Our district has a semi-tropical climate. For this reason, its place in the Anatolian geography and its agricultural fields are very special. Last summer, thousands of decares of agricultural land in the district were opened to zoning, despite the public wanting their places to remain as agricultural land, and despite there being no need for such a plan change in technical data. In other words, you will open thousands of decares of agricultural land, where tropical plants can also be grown, to zoning, and then you will plant a few tropical saplings in a park across from those areas. You will hold an opening in front of our people, making the whole process applauded."

'POLITICS SHOULD BE DONE FOR THE PUBLIC INTEREST'

Politics should be done for the public interest. I have always been of this perspective, and it will be like this from now on. Scientific and technical truths have determined my work and perspective until today, and they will determine them from now on. Our Ancestor also had to resign from his beloved military service. It means that sometimes you have to leave what you love from your essence. I have remained loyal to the main founding principles of the Republican People's Party until the end, and I will continue to be loyal. However, after the process in our district was approved at the chairman level yesterday, I do not want to stay any longer among the management mentality in the Republican People's Party, and as of today, I have resigned from the membership that I have always carried with honor. I think I have fulfilled my council membership duty, which our people gave with great honor in the last term, as a member of the Republican People's Party, resisting and with honor, until the last council meeting. In this process, I met very valuable, very beautiful people who supported the struggle. I thank each of them separately. Always on the path shown by Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, always with Him. Always with love and knowledge..."