His dismissal had been on the agenda: Fahrettin Altun breaks his silence for Ekrem İmamoğlu

Fahrettin Altun, who was dismissed from his position as Director of Communications, confirmed through his lawyer Sezgin Tunç the letter sent to public institutions regarding Serdar Haydanlı, whose name was mentioned as a 'key figure' in the İBB operation. It was stated that the 'cooperation recommendation letter' written by Altun as part of the 100th-anniversary celebrations was sent not only to Haydanlı but to many companies.

The document in question had previously been disclosed to the public by CHP Chairman Özgür Özel. However, official authorities had neither denied nor confirmed the document.

WHISTLEBLOWER OR PARTNER? THE Serdar Haydanlı DEBATE CONTINUES

Serdar Haydanlı had emerged as one of the key figures in the operation dated March 19, 2025, during which İBB Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu was detained.

Media outlets close to the government initially presented Haydanlı as a 'key İBB executive,' but removed their reports after his closeness to the AKP and the major state tenders he received were revealed.

Haydanlı's company, '4.5G Group,' undertook many major tenders, including the promotional film for the Presidency's100th-anniversary celebrations. According toallegations, Haydanlıhas received388 tenders from the stateand municipalities to date.Approximately 300 of thesewere awarded byAKP-run municipalities.

10haber columnist Ertuğrul Özkök included the statements of Fahrettin Altun's lawyer, Sezgin Tunç, in his column. Tunç's statements are as follows:

'Yes, that letter was written. But not just to Serdar Haydanlı. Similar 'assignment' letters were written for many companies due to the 100th anniversary of the Republic. If you wish, I can send you examples of these letters.'

When asked why they had remained silent until now, lawyer Tunç replied, 'We deemed it appropriate not to make a statement due to an ongoing investigation.'

'HAS THE STATE INTERVENED IN FAVOROFİMAMOĞLU WITH THIS DOCUMENT?'

Ertuğrul Özkök, interpreting the documentssent by Altun'slawyer, arguedthat for the first time, the state officially acknowledged the public tenders given to Haydanlı and similar figures.Özkökmade the following assessment: 'Until today, the documents presented to the public were based on the statements of secret witnesses and informants. However, the document confirmed by Fahrettin Altun reveals that the state also has an official relationship with these companies. This is serious evidence for the defense side. In fact, the state has even intervened in favor of İmamoğlu and CHP-run municipalities with this document.' made the following assessment:

'Untiltoday, the documents presented to the public were based on secret witnessand informantstatements.However, the document confirmed by Fahrettin Altun reveals that the state also has an official relationship with these companies. This is serious evidence for the defense side.In fact, the state has evenintervened in favor of İmamoğlu and CHP-run municipalitieswith this document.'could be called a 'struggle'.

 'THE LETTERS HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THE JUDICIARY'

Following this assessment, Altun's lawyer, Tunç, made a statement on the social media platform X, accusing Özkök of 'manipulation':

'The letters in question do not contain any references to any ongoing investigation. It is out of the question for my client, Mr. Altun, to be involved in an ongoing investigation. Ertuğrul Özkök's statements are not journalism; they are manipulation.'

Tunç further argued that the documents were merely general duty letters and in no way carried the meaning of a special relationship or support.

Following the criticism, Ertuğrul Özkök responded with the following statements:

'I made a very clear distinction in my article. I quoted Mr. Tunç's words exactly in quotation marks, and then moved on to the commentary section. You may not agree with my commentary, but this is within the bounds of journalism. You are the one committing the real manipulation by distorting the document that was disclosed to the public.'

Özkök also reminded that the document in question was disclosed by CHP leader Özgür Özel on March 19, stating, 'In other words, I am not the one who first disclosed that document to the public. I only reported on your confirmation.'