İmamoğlu recounts the 'broken chair' dialogue with Erdoğan: 'Not the first time, but...'

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu made statements at a rally held in Çatalca. 

İmamoğlu said, "They have trampled on respect and courtesy. They described the 1 lira to be given to retirees as a burden on the budget. Look, look, look... But when it comes to Kanal Istanbul, their eyes light up. There is a money sign in their eyes, you understand what that is," he said.

HE REACTED TO MINISTERS PARTICIPATING IN ELECTION CAMPAIGNS

Reacting to the ministers campaigning for the AKP's Istanbul candidate Murat Kurum, İmamoğlu said, "Who is the Cabinet? As far as I know, the Cabinet should be in Ankara, but they have all gathered and come to Istanbul. Let's host them at the ballot box. You know how you hosted them on June 23, 806 thousand times over; I don't know how many times you will multiply that. What I know is that an Istanbulite neither eats someone else's rights nor lets their own rights be eaten," he stated.

"THEY WANT TO ESTABLISH A PARTY-STATE"

Stating that "They want to establish a party-state," İmamoğlu said, "We have the Republic of Turkey, which has surpassed 100 years, a gift from God... A pair of blue eyes came, and with the nation's ancestor, they founded the country and entrusted it to us. We are no different from each other. The Republic says something else; a leader looks with a smile, looks at their citizens with compassion. A leader cannot look harshly at their citizens, cannot give orders... In the Republic, a leader must know their place when looking at their citizens," he said.

"I REQUESTED AN APPOINTMENT FROM THE PRESIDENT"

In his statement, İmamoğlu said, "I requested an appointment from the President many times just to discuss Istanbul's problems; did he give one? We were subjected to discrimination. He didn't give one even once," he stated.

THE "BROKEN CHAIR" INCIDENT

IMM Mayor İmamoğlu also recounted the broken chair incident during a meeting of metropolitan mayors hosted by President and AKP Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the Palace in 2019.

İmamoğlu said the following:

"Only when we were first elected, because I was very persistent, did he invite 30 metropolitan mayors? What a coincidence, the names of all 30 people were written in front of them, and I ended up with a broken chair... Then he said to me, 'You are being wasteful, you broke the chair.' I said, 'Not the first time, but I am sitting more firmly the second time, that's why,' I said."

News Source: 12punto