He had resigned: Cemil Tugay’s statement on ADD membership

Izmir Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Cemil Tugay responded on social media to criticisms following his decision to terminate his membership in the Association for Kemalist Thought (ADD) Karşıyaka Branch.

Tugay, who resigned from the CHP in June and has been serving as the Mayor of Izmir Metropolitan Municipality as an independent, met with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the Presidential Complex on September 30. Tugay's departure from his ADD membership also became a topic of discussion on social media.

Making a statement after a social media user criticized his decision, Tugay reacted to the departure being linked to his stance toward Atatürk. Tugay stated that he was unable to participate in the activities of the association in Karşıyaka and could not get along with the management.

"No one can erase the love and respect I have for Atatürk, and no one has asked me to do such a thing. What kind of wrong thoughts are you having? It is just an association in Karşıyaka that I resigned from. I left because I could not participate in its activities and could not get along with its management."

Stating that he had been thinking about leaving his ADD membership for a long time, Tugay expressed that he completed the process via e-Devlet. Emphasizing that millions of people in Izmir live with a love for Atatürk, Tugay stated that association membership cannot be seen as the sole measure of this love.

"While I had been thinking about leaving for a long time, I did it yesterday when I realized it could be done via e-Devlet. There are 4.5 million people in Izmir, and millions of them live with a love for Atatürk. So, how many of them are members of this association? Should they be blamed too then?"

At the end of his statement, Tugay noted that his priority as mayor is to produce solutions to Izmir's problems. Stating that his fundamental responsibility is to ensure that municipal services are carried out in the best possible way in the city, Tugay said, "Failing to solve Izmir's problems would be the greatest harm done to our city and our people. And I will not do this harm to Izmir."