Mansur Yavaş: Young people must hold them accountable

Mansur Yavaş stated that they conduct all tenders with transparency and have not invested a single penny in any project that is not needed. Yavaş expressed that the only difference between mayors and other public officials is that they are elected.

"YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO FIND JOBS IN THE FUTURE, FRIENDS"

Emphasizing that the priorities of municipalities should be issues such as urban infrastructure, healthy water, and public transportation, Yavaş said, "Every mayor has a 'crazy project.' You will see that many of these crazy projects are actually 'junk projects.' But there is no authority to hold them accountable for this. So much money is being spent under the guise of unnecessary projects, even though people's needs are clear."

"IF THEY CANNOT GIVE AN ACCOUNT IN THIS WORLD, HOW WILL THEY GIVE AN ACCOUNT IN THE NEXT?"

Yavaş continued his remarks as follows:

Young people must hold them accountable. It all comes out of your pockets. Transparency, openness, and accountability are necessary. We publish it on our website so everyone can see. I met with the mayor in London. They built an arena; he sits alone in a chair, the municipal council sits above, and he answers whoever asks a question. If a person does not feel this responsibility, they will spend your money however they want. Someone needs to put an end to this. On one hand, there are those who cannot afford to buy meatballs for their children, and on the other, those who ride in luxury cars. One reason for this is the lack of accountability. They say, 'I will give an account in the next world.' If they cannot give an account in this world, how will they give an account in the next?

In a country without the rule of law, human rights do not develop. You won't be able to find jobs in the future, friends. Doesn't this system need to change? Law, merit, and rules... Unfortunately, these have not been put on track in our country. Most importantly, we must prevent a mayor from spending money as they please. We wrote to 550 organizations for the upcoming budget period. We told them to write down whatever they want to be included in our budget. The digital environment has increased demands. Around 300 thousand applications are coming in. I used to call and ask about most of the applications personally. Messages from social media have increased. They report problems to us. If you report them, we see them. The important thing is that the demand is met. That is what municipalities are for. They exist for people's troubles.

We are not in a position to seek status or office. We want to set an example for young people and want them to question things. We have moved away from the mindset of 'I was elected, I can do anything.' We need to talk together about what we can do for Ankara. This generation is very good at living together. Our generation is a generation that judges everything. May beautiful days be yours.

"I HAVE NOT INVESTED A SINGLE PENNY IN ANY PROJECT THAT IS NOT NEEDED"

Noting that the biggest problem in local governments is the authority of mayors, Yavaş said:

We conducted all tenders openly and transparently. I have not invested a single penny in any project that is not needed. But someone else comes along, or in another city, they can leave essential needs aside and spend money elsewhere under the guise of 'I am doing a project.' This is a problem. One of the ways to prevent this is to stop seeing the mayoralty as an important position and for people to see it like any dean here, or at the level of a provincial director in any public institution in Ankara.