CHP Chairman Özgür Özel reacts sharply to 'Extraordinary Congress Cancellation' application

Özel met with Sol Party Chairman Önder İşleyen and the party leadership at their headquarters along with his accompanying delegation.

Speaking at a joint press conference held after the visit, Özel recalled the solidarity they have shown with the Sol Party in the squares and stated that they exchanged views on the future.

Stating that the CHP hosts the rallies they organize but is not the sole owner of these rallies, Özel noted the following:

"We are going through processes supported by parties from the furthest left to the furthest right of Turkish politics, including the Sol Party. We see that the continuation of this process is Turkey's hope. Because today, if we were to place a ballot box, even if it were an early election ballot box, it would actually be a 'referendum ballot box'. Autocracy or democracy? Once there is democracy, we will appear before the nation with our different views, different programs, different proposals, and different commitments, and we will ask for votes in different ways. In line with the support given by the nation, those who become the government will be the government, and those who become the opposition will be the opposition."

Expressing that their priority demands are democracy and justice, Özel emphasized that the only thing they cannot give up is the ballot box and the will of the people.

Upon a journalist's question regarding the fact that the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality was not invited to the meeting held at AFAD following the earthquake in Istanbul, Özel said that what the government is doing is exactly instrumentalizing the earthquake for politics.

Pointing out that they did not invite anyone from the IMM to the meeting, Özel spoke as follows:

"They sat down by themselves, but the AK Party spokesperson and the AK Party provincial chairman are there. Think about it, the state's meeting where they will face the reality of the earthquake in Istanbul, talk about the measures to be taken against the earthquake, and evaluate if there is a weakness that emerged that day; the metropolitan municipality of a city of 16 million is not invited, but a party is invited. After this, they still say 'let it not be instrumentalized for politics, let this not be done'."

Özel also addressed the claims that the IMM has not driven a single nail for the earthquake, explaining the IMM's Earthquake Mobilization Plan, which covers 233 projects worth a total of 114 billion liras.

"THE EXPERT IS İMAMOĞLU"

When asked how he evaluates MHP Chairman Devlet Bahçeli's words, "It is possible to overcome a possible disaster by entrusting Istanbul to its experts and deserving hands," Özgür Özel made the following assessment:

"I read it as 'he is suggesting trial without detention'. Because who will decide that a city will be entrusted to safe hands? I suppose if we are in a democracy, I suppose the one who made Mr. Devlet an Osmaniye deputy and the Chairman of his party is the will of the nation and democracy, right? We asked the people of Istanbul 3 times. The second one is out of indigestion. We won the first one in 2019. They renewed it saying, 'Are we going to give you Istanbul with 13 thousand votes?', and we won with a margin of 806 thousand. We served for 5 years, and the people of Istanbul entrusted Istanbul with a margin of over 1 million 100 thousand. And not just for any term, but as an answer to 5 years of performance. They said, 'Take it and manage it for another five years.' They said, 'I am entrusting the job to the expert.' They said, 'The expert is İmamoğlu'."

When asked about National Defense Minister Yaşar Güler's statement regarding the soldier who was martyred as a result of a terrorist attack, Özel said, "I find this language and tone meaningful, I find it unbecoming. I wish God's mercy upon our martyr. There is nothing to be said. I mean, the reactions shown are not in vain. A wrong thing has been done."

When asked about President Erdoğan's words, "We must focus on rapidly implementing urban transformation projects without looking at what the marginals who oppose everything say," and the detention of IMM lawyers, Özel said, "Those who are in the hearts of the nation are everyone who resisted Erdoğan's March 19 coup today. This language, this mindset, and this tone are what have been pushed to the periphery and marginalized. Urban transformation is extremely vital. For this, the Parliament and metropolitan municipal councils must do whatever is necessary."

Evaluating the detention of IMM lawyers, Özel stated, "If the lawyers had a crime, they should have been accused of the same thing during the first operation when everyone was detained. Since they were not accused that day, their crime today is providing a defense. They are trying to put the legal profession on trial. We are hearing unbelievable things."

"I FEEL GREAT SHAME FOR HAVING BEEN IN THE SAME PARTY AS THEM"

When asked about the application filed for the cancellation of the CHP's 21st Extraordinary Congress, Özel noted the following:

"These are the same people who took the ordinary congress to court. Both the one from İzmir and the one from Hatay. I won't waste my breath by naming them. They didn't get results there. They called it 'dubious'. They said this, they said that. Five courts rejected them. Now they have come out for the extraordinary congress we held. We received 1170 votes. What are you going to cancel? Don't they see that if it is cancelled, we will receive 1300 votes? Because such a miserable structure has brought itself to these states, one of them is a person who was removed and expelled from the party for a period. I feel great shame for having been in the same party as them for a period. I suppose we made a decision about one of them, in the desperation of those days. Because of that, there is a self-criticism I need to make to myself."

Sol Party Chairman Önder İşleyen also thanked Özel for his visit and said that what they have in common is the future of the country and the salvation of the country.

News Source: AA