Özgür Özel to Erdoğan: 'Control your dogs and curs who mess with us'

Speaking about Ekrem İmamoğlu's father, Hasan İmamoğlu, who was summoned to testify today, Özel said, "President Ekrem's father's company is 75 years old. They seized all the assets of this company. They even blocked Uncle Hasan's pension. Trying to leave an 85-year-old man unable to even buy bread... What kind of grudge is this? Who entrusted you with this grudge? It wasn't enough to mess with President Ekrem, aren't you ashamed to mess with 85-year-old Uncle Hasan?"  he said.

Özel had previously asked Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor Akın Gürlek, "Have you earned any other income through other means besides your Chief Prosecutor position and salary?" to which he received no response. Özel made a statement regarding Gürlek.

Announcing that Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor Akın Gürlek receives a salary from abroad, Özel said, "On November 29, 2024, Akın Gürlek was appointed as a board member to Eti Maden's company in Luxembourg. Even when İmamoğlu was arrested, he continued to receive his salaries from there for 9 months. As soon as Özgür Özel says 'I know what is going on,' he hastily resigned from the board membership on August 6, 2025. I am calling out to Akın Gürlek: You earned income through a company that makes decisions in Euros from Luxembourg without my knowledge; will you submit your resignation tomorrow morning?"

The highlights from Özgür Özel's speech are as follows: 

"Ümraniye is, if anything, the fortress of the people. Mr. Tayyip, the man of the halls, would hold a rally if he could find this square. But can he come among you? That era is over. The era of ministers' children is ending, and the era of the nation's children is beginning. Today, Aykut has been held as a political prisoner for 155 days. They are trying to discredit us by locking up the number one name in the fight against corruption in Parliament. Greetings to those who do not fit into these squares, well done to all of you.

Will you show this government, which has turned its back on the laborer, its day at the ballot box? 230 days have passed since the March 19 coup. 230 days have passed since the AKP threw in the towel. Erdoğan, who once asked the late Ecevit, 'Will you only leave when you die?', is now at that same age. Our President Ekrem, whom 15 million people nominated on March 23, continues his struggle. Sooner or later, we will make him President!"

Recently, an indictment came out and turned into trash. The confessor and organized crime leader, for whom they demanded a 704-year sentence, is walking among us. Our mayors, who are being tried for 4 years, are still inside. Someone came and talked about a photo with my mother, he came to the room and had a photo taken. This man was a spy; he stole data from İmamoğlu. This is the man who gave presentations at the police department with the reference of the AKP. This is the one who received cybersecurity tenders from the state after President Ekrem was put inside. Shame on those who try to smear the nationalist son of Trabzon by having their own spies slander us!"

They are threatening mothers with their children. Because they couldn't manage to release the indictment in October as they claimed, a chief public prosecutor is now summoning İmamoğlu's child and father to the police station. Mayor Ekrem's father's company is 75 years old. They have seized all the assets of this company. They have even blocked Uncle Hasan's pension. Trying to leave an 85-year-old man unable to even buy bread... What kind of grudge is this? Who entrusted this grudge to you? You are messing with Mayor Ekrem, and that's not enough; aren't you ashamed to mess with 85-year-old Uncle Hasan? They gave Mayor Ekrem an award from abroad.

They wanted to give it to Mayor Ekrem's wife. The state grants green passports to Metropolitan Mayors and their families. This government introduced that. I just learned that they have canceled the green passports of Mayor Ekrem's family. There is slander, but no indictment. There is no trial, no verdict, no final judgment. Messing with a family is dishonorable.

"ERDOĞAN, CONTROL YOUR DOGS AND CURS WHO ARE MESSING WITH US"

You became the Metropolitan Mayor, you were tried for bribery, Erdoğan. Were you ever held at the police station for a single day? When your sentence was finalized, you were called by phone, you went there, and you released a poetry cassette. You are doing to others today what was not done to you. May your tyranny wither away, shame on you. They are not letting us hang our posters featuring Mayor Ekrem tonight; acting like a bully toward that image is not heroism. 

I am looking you in the eye, Erdoğan! You served as mayor, you were tried. Did anyone ever come to your door or take your spouse from your side? You boasted that 30,000 visitors came. You were the victim of yesterday, you are the tyrant of today. I am telling you this while looking you straight in the eye!

Control your dogs and curs who are messing with us! From now on, if I hear something I don't deserve, you will hear what you deserve. You will hear much worse. You've come out today talking about overheating, transmissions, axles, and whatnot. The people in this square are calling for rights, law, and justice!