The behind-the-scenes of the Özlem Çerçioğlu crisis in the CHP revealed! 'We should have expelled her...'

The developments behind the scenes of the defection of Aydın Metropolitan Mayor Özlem Çerçioğlu, who resigned from the CHP to join the AKP, remain a hot topic. Striking statements regarding this process came from CHP Aydın Deputy Bülent Tezcan.

Journalist Fatih Altaylı met with Tezcan at Silivri Prison. In an interview published in the "YORUMLAYAMIYOR" (CANNOT INTERPRET) series on his personal YouTube channel, Altaylı asked whether Çerçioğlu's decision was rooted in resentment toward the CHP's Tezcan. Tezcan described his relationship with Çerçioğlu as follows:

"BAYKAL AND KILIÇDAROĞLU SUPPORTED HER"

“I first saw Ms. Özlem in 2002 when she came to Önder Sav's office to apply for candidacy. I was the district head of Kuşadası at the time. I didn't know her at all, and I was surprised when I learned she was applying for candidacy from Aydın. Because I didn't know her at all. In that election, she was placed 4th on the list. I also gave my support.

My support continued throughout, but the chairmen, both during the Deniz Baykal and Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu eras, always supported her; I could even say she was spoiled. After serving one and a half terms as a deputy, she moved on to the mayoralty. There, too, she always received tolerance from the headquarters and the chairmen. She was very controlling; she wanted to determine everything herself, to form the districts and the party administration in the province herself. So much so that she fought with all the mayors. She always had problems.”

THE ISSUE WAS THE DREAM OF IZMIR!

Tezcan shared the following regarding the Çerçioğlu-CHP crisis:

“Actually, the problem started with Çerçioğlu's desire to be the İzmir Metropolitan candidate. We asked her who would take over Aydın if she became the İzmir candidate. She gave the name of Kuşadası Mayor Ömer Güner. We conducted a poll in Aydın and saw that Ömer Güner could easily win Aydın. Çerçioğlu had also commissioned a poll, and she reached the same conclusion.

However, Özlem Çerçioğlu could not become the candidate for İzmir. İzmir wanted someone from within its own ranks. Upon this, Çerçioğlu became the candidate for Aydın and won. However, she began to envy and fall out with Ömer Güner, the only district mayor she had recommended to replace her and with whom she could get along.

So much so that during the campaign, she had his billboards removed and stopped joint projects. She even secretly supported the IYI Party candidate in Kuşadası. The Metropolitan Municipality and Kuşadası used to operate some beaches together. She tore them out from there.”

"IF YOU ARE CONFIDENT, WE AS A PARTY WILL STAND BEHIND YOU"

CHP's Tezcan evaluated the process of Çerçioğlu's transition to the AKP as follows:

“It wasn't because of these things that she left. A few months ago, information arrived that there were investigations regarding Aziz İhsan Aktaş, with whom the Aydın Metropolitan Municipality had collaborated. She was asked about it, and it was true. The municipality had done business with Aziz İhsan Aktaş. She was uneasy. The party told her not to be uneasy if there was nothing wrong. Gökan Zeybek went and said, ‘If you are confident, we as a party will stand behind you, don't worry.’”

Tezcan continued:

"However, she panicked. It is probable that there was something. Then she stopped answering calls from the headquarters. We learned that she began to pressure the friends inside, forcing them to resign from the party. She even forced the son of the former Aydın Provincial Chairman, who had made her a deputy, to resign from the party.”

"WE SHOULD HAVE EXPELLED HER FROM THE PARTY WHEN WE HEARD THE ALLEGATIONS"

To Altaylı's question, “So, do you have any regrets regarding Özlem Çerçioğlu?”, Tezcan replied as follows:

“One should not keep anyone in a position for this long; that is the biggest mistake. Another regret is that when we heard these allegations, instead of asking her, we should have investigated as a party, and if we found something related to the allegations, we should have expelled her from the party.”