Historic crowd at CHP's Niğde rally: Özgür Özel reveals his only demand from Erdoğan!

Niğde was the latest stop for the 'Defending the National Will' rallies organized by the CHP to demand the release of its imprisoned presidential candidate and Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, as well as to call for early elections.

Citizens who completely filled Niğde Republic Square chanted slogans in support of Ekrem İmamoğlu, who has been held in a 12-square-meter cell at Silivri Prison for 325 days, and other imprisoned mayors, while calling on the government to resign.

Meanwhile, a letter sent by Ekrem İmamoğlu from Silivri to Niğde was read to the public by CHP Niğde Provincial Chair Bünyamin Kıvrakdal.

In the letter read by Kıvrakdal, İmamoğlu stated the following:

“The big-hearted, beautiful people of beautiful Niğde... Esteemed ladies, respected gentlemen, dear youth, our precious children... I greet each and every one of you with respect, love, and longing, and I embrace you with all my heart. In these days when I miss you so much, I would like to thank our Provincial Chair Bünyamin Kıvrakdal, who represents the determined and resolute struggle of our organization and who has made it possible for me to be among you, even if only through a letter. You are fighting for the rule of law and democracy to prevail, for justice to be served, and you are taking ownership of our country's future. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you, may you exist...”

“Law and democracy are the essence of our Republic. If those who govern the country move away from law and democracy, they also move away from the Republic and the nation. For years, our country has been struggling with problems caused by a government that violates the law and democracy and disregards the nation. Those who try to protect their seats by ignoring and suppressing the will of the noble nation from which they emerged are doing great harm to our country.

Since they lost Istanbul in the March 31, 2019 local elections, they have been pursuing attacks, dirty plots, and dark schemes targeting the national will. They began their malice in 2019, on the very night of the election. Their first act was to prevent the election results from being broadcast on television. There have been many unlawful and anti-democratic practices in our political history, but a disgrace like hiding election results from citizens through state institutions has never been seen before.”

“THE DISGRACE DID NOT END THERE...”

"The disgrace didn't end there... They used the lies and slanders they manufactured as an excuse to cancel the Istanbul election. They declared that out of the four votes cast in the same envelope, only the one for Ekrem İmamoğlu was invalid. A few days ago, the Constitutional Court ruled that concealing election results from the public on the night of March 31, 2019, was an unjust and unlawful act. Our nation had already made the same decision and had punished the usurpers of the national will at the ballot box."

It will be the same again. The punishment for the unlawful and undemocratic actions that the government continues to commit will be dealt at the ballot box once more. Today, they are still trying to put us on trial with the slander that we won the 2019 Istanbul elections through political espionage and manipulation. With this helplessness, with this wretchedness, you are only deceiving yourselves. Does our nation not know who they voted for and why, or whom they punished at the ballot box and why? Learn to lose. Learn to respect the will of the nation. Our nation does not forget or forgive the injustices and tyranny committed against its will. Governments that have lost their love and respect for the nation, and have closed their eyes to the nation's troubles, will leave just as they came."

"This merciless, heartless government, which benefits no one but a handful of people, will also go. A fair, meritocratic, productive, and pro-people administration will take office. Those whose time is up, those who have run out of steam, will go; those who offer hope, those who get things done, and those who dedicate themselves to the nation will take office. When the ballot boxes are opened on election night, everyone will face the truth. You will see; our nation will embrace the republic, democracy, and the rule of law so firmly that... Our nation will embrace justice and freedom so firmly that..."

Turkey will never again be one of those oppressive regimes where all powers are concentrated in one person, and the opposition is suppressed and attempted to be destroyed through the judiciary. Turkey will never again be one of those merciless regimes where wealth is transferred to a handful of people, while troubles and hardships are loaded onto the backs of the nation. The government will change, and our longing as a nation for peace, prosperity, and happiness will end. From now on, only justice and freedom, abundance and prosperity, unity and brotherhood will prevail in these lands. Everything will be very beautiful."

Ekrem İmamoğlu. Silivri Prison."

ÖZGÜR ÖZEL ADDRESSES THE CITIZENS

The rally continues with the speech of CHP Chairman Özgür Özel.

Highlights from CHP leader Özel's speech are as follows:

"Hello Niğde! Hello my dear Niğde! Niğde with its ancient history, rich soil, and brave people; brave people of Niğde, welcome! Greetings to Altunhisar, greetings to Bor, to Çamardı... Greetings to Çiftlik, greetings to Ulukışla!"

I come here from the earthquake zone on the third anniversary of the disaster, from six of our provinces and districts that suffered the most severe damage, from among those who lost their loved ones in that earthquake, from container cities, from the streets, from mourning and pain. May our nation's condolences be accepted once again. I pray that we do not see such pain, that we do not experience it again, and from this square, we send a great greeting, a great greeting to the earthquake zone.

A "SISI" JIBE AT ERDOĞAN: "YOU ARE VIOLATING PEOPLE'S RIGHTS"

Everyone spent the past week with their loved ones. I was in Osmaniye, Kahramanmaraş, Gaziantep, Adıyaman, and Malatya last week. I was in the container cities, hand in hand and heart to heart with the earthquake survivors. Mr. Erdoğan, meanwhile, spent the last week with the Saudi Arabian prince he once called a 'blood-stained murderer' and with Sisi, whom he called a 'putschist.' Finally, he came to Turkey yesterday.

Finally, finally he deigned to go to Osmaniye. He had a grand stage set up. He made the earthquake survivors watch videos from that stage, and without getting off the stage, without entering the streets, without seeing the situation in the container cities, and without listening to the people, he made them listen to him. He said all sorts of things and left.

Yet we had all called out to him together from the earthquake zone. We said; 'Here, on the third anniversary of the earthquake, when you have only built 2% of the houses you promised to build in one year, when you reached 30% in the second year, and when you are still at 70% by your own figures in the third year, while 270,000 people are staying in containers, let's put these things aside.' Since you collected the Motor Vehicle Tax twice, doubled the VAT, took the SCT, and increased the departure fees for traveling abroad; you collected 71 billion dollars for the earthquake from the increased taxes, campaigns, and donations, and you say 'these houses were finished for 40 billion'... Then, since this money was collected, why are you making these earthquake survivors sign blank promissory notes before giving them the keys? Why should these people pay for 18 years? Why are you violating these people's rights and upsetting them with the reserve area designation?

A CALL TO ERDOĞAN

And I said; 'Come, end this shame of blank promissory notes, eliminate the disgrace of interest, extend the force majeure status again, solve the problems with the reserve areas, end the container ordeal, support the tenants as well, give them houses, give them a place to lay their heads.' I said I would thank him if he addressed these. Yesterday in Osmaniye, he came out and didn't mention any of these.

We are calling out from here to the earthquake zone: Those houses, those built houses; they have deficiencies, they need renovations, they have difficulties; they were built with the taxes paid by this nation, with the campaigns of this nation, with the money of this nation. And that money was collected in abundance. Whatever we did for the earthquake zone, may it be well-deserved. It is my call to Erdoğan: Let's tear up the blank promissory notes, let's not make earthquake victims sign promissory notes. May it be well-deserved!"

"NİĞDE IS FROM NOW ON THE FORTRESS OF THE NATION"

We finished our visit to the earthquake zone and rushed to Niğde before going to Ankara. They said, 'There is rain,' they said, 'It is the beginning of February,' they said, 'The weather will be cold, no one will come.' We said; a rally might not be held in this weather, on this date, but we are not coming to Niğde for a rally; we are coming to hear Niğde, to listen to Niğde, to call out to Niğde, to talk about all the injustices in Niğde, to take refuge in the conscience of Niğde, and to hold a protest for justice for the 87th time!

To those overflowing from this square, to those remaining outside the barriers, to those who stayed outside the rally square and could not get in, to those who filled this square with a historic crowd, well done, greetings to you all!

We are people who possess the idea of democracy, we are politicians; we are a political party that believes in the idea of democracy. For many long years in Niğde, for many long years in politics, we could not reach the point we wanted. We have not been able to win the Niğde Municipality for years, but we have never disrespected the choice of Niğde, we have not looked down on them. We said, 'They know something,' we said, 'The nation knows what is right, the nation gives the authority'; we respected those who choose and those who are chosen.

From here, we congratulate the Justice and Development Party Mayor who won the Niğde elections, as well as the municipal council members, along with the entire municipal council. Let them work for Niğde, we say that we will also provide the support we can.

Because democracy is not measured by what you do on the day you win an election. Drums and pipes when you win, compliments to the nation when you win, national will when you win; objecting to the nation's choice when you lose, objecting to the nation, a coup... These things cannot happen! I am calling out to Erdoğan from here: Niğde is no one's fortress; Niğde is from now on the fortress of the nation, it is the fortress of the nation!

"YOU WILL NOT STAND THE STATE AGAINST THIS NATION"

Whatever Niğde says, that is what happens; whatever the nation says, that is what happens. This nation loves its state. When the state calls, they go to military service. They apply henna to their hands and send their children to the army. This nation produces martyrs and says, 'May the homeland be blessed.' This nation pays taxes when you ask, and they come when you call. But you must not pit the state against this nation. If the nation and the state compete, rest assured of this: only the nation wins, and what the nation says is what happens!

I say this to those who try to turn governors into provincial party chairs, to those who want to see district governors as district party chairs, and to those who try to make civil servants into party officials: You are tampering with the settings of this state, you are playing with the nerves of this nation. You use the authority when this nation gives it to you, and you suffer from indigestion when they don't. This nation will have the final say. This nation said the first word a hundred years ago, and it said the last word as well. Whatever Niğde says, that is what will happen!"

THANKS TO ÖMER FETHİ GÜRER AND ERHAN ADEM

On this meaningful day, I congratulate the entire Republican People's Party organization and our district chairs for their efforts, in the person of our Provincial Chair, Bünyamin. I thank you for the support you have given to Niğde's elected deputy, Ömer Fethi Gürer, who always makes your voice heard in Parliament and works for the problems of Turkish farmers.

And again, a special thanks. The May 14 and May 28 elections had left us disheartened. While walking down the street, we would kick soda caps on the ground and couldn't look each other in the eye. Teachers' lounges were empty; teachers had no joy left to go and chat. Young people were sitting in dark rooms, and mothers weren't even turning on the television.

In those days, when the Republican People's Party ignited the fuse to stand this party up, to stand this country up, to set out on a path, and to start a change to alter Turkey's destiny—and four months later, when it reached the point of becoming the first party after forty-seven years—young politicians from all over Turkey put in the effort. A team with an average age of forty-two won a great victory in the party and then in the country. In that team, which had no losers, which stood the party up and then stood Turkey up, Erhan Adem was by your Chairman's side. I thank Erhan Adem!

Chairman Erhan, our deputy Ömer Fethi Gürer, and our organization are following every problem Niğde has, both in all of Turkey, in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, and on the streets. They bring me the most issues regarding both the farmers—potatoes and onions—and the problems of Niğde.

For example, the Niğde Museum. They have been talking about it for years; it was nominated for the European Museum of the Year Award and has 20,000 historical artifacts. It was damaged on February 6, and they said, 'It will be demolished and rebuilt'; construction hasn't even started. To attract tourists to this city—both domestic and from all over the world—this important work must absolutely be done."

"WE WANT THE BALLOT BOX, WE WANT AN EARLY ELECTION!"

On one hand, I hear such things; they laid the foundation for Niğde Airport in 1996. They hired a guard for that airport back then. It is now 2026; there is no airport, and the guard retired last year under the EYT (Early Retirement) scheme. Can you imagine such dark humor? Can a guard wait for an airport that hasn't been built for 30 years and then retire? You held a symbolic welcome ceremony at that airport a while ago, but they still haven't seen this and done the work that Niğde deserves.

On the other hand, the Bor Physical Therapy Center was damaged in the earthquake and demolished. Before the election, they dug a hole as a fake 'foundation'. The opening was scheduled for February 2025; it is still nowhere to be seen. The contractor has fled, and there is no progress.

There is a water problem in the villages. The Akkaya Dam, built in 1970, has still not been converted to a closed system. Water waste is at an extreme level; therefore, it needs to be planned as soon as possible. Five textile factories have shut down; workers, women workers, have been left unemployed. Niğde is forced to struggle with all these problems.

For this reason, we say this: We have given up on asking this government for anything in these squares—as I will say in a moment—for the retirees, for the workers, or for Niğde in this square. Because they do not do any of it. They deem 1,000 liras appropriate for retirees, they have kept Niğde waiting for 30 years, and they solve none of the problems. Therefore, not for an airport, not for a museum, not for anything else, not for potato prices, not for a raise for retirees... We want only one thing from this government, from Erdoğan: We want the ballot box, we want an early election!"

News Source: 12punto