Fatih Erbakan makes statement on alliance with Özgür Özel
Putting an end to alliance debates for the elections, New Welfare Party (Yeniden Refah Partisi) Chairman Fatih Erbakan stated that it would be correct for his party to enter the elections alone. Erbakan also expressed that there are no plans for a partnership with the new party that Özgür Özel might establish.
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New Welfare Party Chairman Fatih Erbakan made statements regarding the alliance policy to be followed in the elections. Appearing as a guest on Hasan Basri Akdemir’s YouTube program, Erbakan said that it would be correct for his party to enter the elections alone.
Erbakan also responded to criticisms occasionally voiced in the public sphere that "they received votes thanks to the People's Alliance (Cumhur İttifakı)." Reminding that the New Welfare Party received 2.89 percent of the vote while within the People's Alliance, Erbakan stated that they reached 7 percent outside of an alliance in the local elections.
Erbakan stated, "Therefore, our votes increased more than twofold outside of the People's Alliance," expressing that it is not accurate to explain the party's vote increase through alliance support.
Stating that the decision to take part in the People's Alliance in the past was evaluated within the conditions of that period, Erbakan emphasized that their stance today is different. Erbakan said, "The right thing for us that day, and the expectation of the conservative voter, was for us to be there. But the right thing today is no longer to be in the People's Alliance. Because something that has been tried is not tried again."
Responding to a question regarding Özgür Özel's preparations for a new party, Erbakan said that they would not take part in an alliance led by the CHP either. Erbakan used the expressions, "Now there is not one CHP, but two. I think that would not be appropriate either. I think it would be correct for us to enter the elections alone."