İYİ Party's Ensarioğlu explains reason for joining AKP: 'I said 10 years ago what Bahçeli is saying now'

Ensarioğlu explained his reason for joining the AKP. A detail regarding 'Öcalan' stood out in Mehmet Salim Ensarioğlu's statement.

According to Rudaw, Ensarioğlu stated, "I joined the AK Party because I believe that peace in Turkey will stop the bloodshed," adding, "The President invited me, I went and shared my thoughts with him. We discussed the issue of peace and the latest developments in Syria and the Middle East with the President."

Answering the question, 'What is your reason for joining the AKP?', Ensarioğlu said the following:

"To put it briefly; first of all, the AK Party was the party closest to me. In parliament, the mentality closest to me was center-right, and the party closest to that was the AK Party. But of course, this happens through mutual discussion. It didn't happen on its own."

THE ÖCALAN DETAIL

My reason for coming was this: becoming a member of parliament at 65 doesn't gain me anything. I have served as a minister and a member of parliament in the past. There was blood flowing in Turkey and in the Middle East. And from the very beginning, without taking sides, without being a member of HADEP, I was a state minister; I fought for this bloodshed to stop, not for a secret state agenda, but for the citizens, for both Turks and Kurds.

In fact, I was the first to say that Abdullah Öcalan should make a statement on television. They targeted me. They called me a separatist and so on. Then, Bahçeli came out and said, 'Let Öcalan come to Parliament and speak.' What I said was 10 years ago."

"I AM CLOSE TO THEM"

Responding to the question, "Did you join upon the President's invitation?", Ensarioğlu replied, "The People's Alliance is close to my way of thinking. I am close to them. To be more explicit, the AK Party is a party for all of Turkey. I joined, firstly, for peace, and secondly, to strengthen friendship in Syria, where the President is pursuing a sound state policy. The same applies to Iraq. Because our Kurds are mostly in Turkey, followed by Iraq and Syria. When I say 'our Kurds,' I mean that Turks are also my brothers. I make no distinction. But because I believe that this bloodshed must stop and that it will stop through the policy in Syria and peace in Turkey, the President invited me, I went, and I shared the same view with him." 

News Source: 12punto