President Erdoğan warns opposition against 'political gain': There is no other Turkey

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made statements at the Presidential Complex following the Cabinet Meeting.

Here are the highlights from Erdoğan's statements:

At the very beginning of my remarks, I wish for God's mercy upon our police officers who were martyred while intervening in a security incident that occurred yesterday in our Çorlu district. I extend my condolences to the grieving families of our martyrs, their relatives, our Turkish police force, and our beloved nation. I wish a speedy recovery to our 6 citizens who lost their lives as a result of the heinous attack in Tarsus. The aftershocks of the crisis that began with the attacks on Iran on February 28 are still continuing. We are facing a multi-layered uncertainty where inflation is on the rise in many countries around the world and the congestion in the Strait of Hormuz cannot be overcome.

"THE DIMENSIONS OF THE DESTRUCTION CANNOT BE FULLY ESTIMATED"

The dimensions of the destruction caused by this shock wave cannot be fully estimated. The more serious aspect of the matter is that this atmosphere produces a parasitic economy at the global level and creates a rent system based more on speculation and manipulation. A handful of savage capitalists are fattening themselves by literally snatching the morsel from the throats of billions of people. While the bread on the tables of the middle and lower-income groups is shrinking, their wallets are getting fatter. Every war has winners and losers. However, with the Iran war, this situation has exceeded the limits of endurance and has reached destructive dimensions in terms of global economic prosperity.

Instead of making constructive criticisms during the Iran war and the subsequent period, which brought our region to the brink of an abyss, the opposition has unfortunately chosen to turn the process into a tool for their political interests and has resorted to crisis opportunism. They could not free themselves from the mentality of 'let the government be worn down, even if Turkey loses if necessary.' Instead of strengthening the solution-producing capacity of the political institution by calling right right and wrong wrong, they cannot go beyond calling what the government says is white, black, and what it says is right, wrong.

"RESORTING TO THREATENING RHETORIC TO SHIELD THE CORRUPTION AGENDA IS CHEAP AND STALE POLITICS"

This is done with an ugly, hurtful, and destructive tone that is rarely seen in our political history. Being an opposition does not mean distorting facts or being so blinded that one would set the country on fire for political gain. The duty of the opposition is not to provoke, incite, or try to profit from this by acting as an economic hitman. Especially resorting to threatening rhetoric to shield the corruption agenda is cheap and stale politics. In democracies, the opposition is as responsible as the government. It must act responsibly when the interests of the country and the nation are at stake.

In a period when our region is passing through a ring of fire, no one can see ahead, and a new equation is being established, the opposition must display a domestic and national stance. It must be calculated very well who benefits from the rhetoric cut on social media. There is no other Turkey. As 86 million people, we have no other homeland than this paradise country. No one has the right to harm this, cast a shadow on the environment of stability and trust in Turkey, or strike a blow to our country's interests by hiding behind the excuse of 'I am opposing.'

"WHEN A COUNTRY IN THE MIDDLE EAST SNEEZES, A COUNTRY IN LATIN AMERICA OR ASIA CAN EASILY CATCH A COLD"

We all have to act with the principle of 'my nation first, my country first.' As our world globalizes, problems, crises, and opportunities gain a global dimension. In this new world where distances have lost their meaning, no one has the luxury of remaining indifferent to what is happening in other parts of the earth. When a country in the Middle East sneezes, a country in Latin America or Asia can easily catch a cold. The food shortage caused by the Russia-Ukraine war hit African countries the most. We witnessed how COVID-19 evolved into an economic, political, and social crisis.

The days when everyone was on their own are behind us. Like every country integrated into the global economy, we are affected in one way or another by every positive or negative event outside. Even if the flames of the fire in our region do not reach us, unfortunately, the smoke reaches us and spreads. Thanks to the steps we have taken in every field and the measures we have taken in a timely manner, we keep this at a minimum compared to other countries. We have overcome the most difficult days with ease through the measures we have rapidly implemented in fertilizer, energy supply, and transportation. We have made efforts to reduce tension with our peaceful policy that prioritizes negotiation, dialogue, and diplomacy. By increasing our dialogue with our Turkish and Kurdish brothers in the region, we have contributed to the disruption of games that would deepen instability.

News Source: 12punto