İYİ Party's Kavuncu evaluates İbrahim Özkan

Buğra Kavuncu, the organization head of the İYİ Party, which has been on the agenda recently with resignation news, evaluated the resignation processes and the statements made by İbrahim Özkan during a live broadcast. Kavuncu also spoke about his party's candidates for Istanbul and Ankara.

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İYİ Party's Kavuncu evaluates İbrahim Özkan

İYİ Party Organization Head Buğra Kavuncu answered questions from Mehmet Akif Ersoy on Habertürk regarding the recent debates.

The highlights from Kavuncu's statements are as follows:

"MUST SHOW UNDERSTANDING"

We met frequently with Mr. İmamoğlu during my time as the Istanbul Provincial Chair. An alliance had been formed. Mr. İmamoğlu was the mayor of this alliance.

We had many projects, such as 'Tell Istanbul'. We would convey the problems we identified to him. My last meeting was after our 3rd ordinary congress, when I was appointed as the organization head.

He called to congratulate me. That was our last meeting. The İYİ Party is a political party. It is an institutional structure. It has decision-making bodies. Everyone, starting with the members of this party and everyone outside of this party, is obliged to respect, show understanding for, understand, and accept the decisions taken by these bodies.

"THE MATTER IS CLOSED FOR US"

We held an event in Kocatepe on August 26. Our leader expressed our roadmap. Later, at the GİK (General Administrative Board) meeting, we entered into a study to express ourselves to our nation with our own candidates in the upcoming local elections. Our leader's interlocutor is Mr. Özgür Özel.

Mr. Özel made a proposal. Our leader took it to our party's decision-making bodies once more. It was a proud event in Turkish political history.

A vote was held after 9 hours, despite the decision having been made 2 months ago. The matter is closed for us. Apart from this, no one accepts, nor can they accept, that a person who has served as the party's group deputy chair or any official speaks against the decision taken by the GİK outside the party, on social media, or in other media outlets, and we have taken the necessary steps.

"EVERYONE MUST SHOW RESPECT"

Ekrem İmamoğlu has been given such authority; he has other duties besides the mayorship, which do not concern us.

The issue that concerns us is this: 6 years ago, a political party made a decision, and we have experienced many difficulties since that day. Of course, we have had our mistakes and shortcomings.

Everyone must respect the stance of an institution here. Everyone, starting with the members of this party and all our political interlocutors, must respect the decision taken. Apart from this, the work done has no value in our eyes.

"I HAD PREFERRED ÖZKAN"

We had a local election in 2019. An alliance was made at that time. Following the local election, some of our council members elected in the districts took part in the metropolitan municipal council. A group deputy chair was elected from among them.

The deputy of that political party in that province is the group deputy chair. This is declared in the bylaws in a way that an election will be held; but by tradition and custom, it is the person pointed out by the provincial chair. At that time, I had preferred İbrahim Özkan among our municipal council members.

I was the provincial chair at that time. If we come to today's process, we made a decision. If you are an institution, you have to maintain the seriousness of this institution and make its mechanisms work. This decision taken has been clearly expressed. It was debated for 9 hours. It was a very high-quality debate.

"NO ONE WILL BE TREATED DIFFERENTLY"

Friends who wanted to cooperate in the elections explained their reasons, and friends who wanted to go to the elections freely and independently explained at length. Everyone wanted to convince each other. After this decision was taken, it is the duty of all our party members to execute this decision.

If you take this decision and go into business on your own by saying 'I do not recognize this decision' on social media, in certain channels, and in front of the media, this will not be allowed. When our previous group deputy chair made criticisms on social media, I called him.

I told him that we respect his views and asked him to come to the headquarters and explain them. No one in our party is treated differently.

If you are in an executive position and you reach a point where you say in public that the decision is wrong, the party takes action. I warned him. He said to me, 'You are right.' I said, 'If you continue like this, we will expel you; stop talking like this.' He agreed at first. He knows these things very well. He is a business owner and has worked in institutions. He is one of the people who will understand well what I want to say.

"HE CONTINUED TO MAKE STATEMENTS AGAINST IT"

He said, 'I will negotiate with backdoor diplomacy.' I warned him, 'Give up on this, you have no such duty, we have no such agenda, give up on this.' Then he understood the clarity of the decision taken.

He stated that he understood the issue of acting in accordance with the decision, that he agreed with me that this should not be done, and that he would be careful.

He continued to make statements against the decision taken by the party as our group deputy chair in the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Council. This decision was taken within the party with a vote of 14 to 35. If someone does not comply with the decision, the necessary action must be taken. And we did what was necessary.

'DECLARATION OF WAR' STATEMENT

Our leader's expression is clear. It is not an issue to be addressed to a specific place. A decision was taken, and if there are those who are planning, working, or preparing outside of this decision in other channels despite this, if there is no error in the analogy, I accept this as a declaration of war.

He wanted to say that if such a step is being taken, we are in on it too. Everyone is obliged to respect the decisions taken by the party. It is the nation that will make the decision. It is not something to be portrayed as a sentence to be exaggerated.

Every political party's mayoral candidate aims to consolidate the voters as much as possible. If this is what is meant, there is no harm. But if a mechanism is to be operated between institutions, my leader's interlocutor is Özgür Özel. He is the CHP leader.

SPOKE ABOUT OPERATION ALLEGATIONS

We have a decision we have taken. There is a mechanism. Parties have bodies that will make decisions. In the CHP, it is called the Party Assembly; in the AK Party, it is the MKYK; we have the General Administrative Board. Sitting down and talking about the decision they have made with people who have no official duty outside of these structures, and entering into engagements and plans with these people, is perceived as an operation.

The normal thing in this business is what Mr. Özgür Özel did. He makes a proposal, and the party makes its decision. Outside of the process that works officially and transparently between institutions, you cannot say 'These are official meetings, they are respected' for any practice to be done behind closed doors, especially after a decision has been taken. You call this an operation, you give it different names.

"WE SEE THE FRIEND AND THE FOE"

We will look ahead now. When we took this decision, when we took the decision to be free and independent, we are fighting against one wing in a Turkey squeezed between two poles. We say that we will disrupt a comfort zone with the decision we have taken. This struggle has been going on for 25 years.

In quotes, we broke the habit of 'the taker is satisfied, the giver is satisfied.' We destroyed a comfort zone. We are not in a position to meet with anyone outside. We will mind our own business. We will take the necessary decisions when there are such drifts within ourselves. It is a stormy process. We knew what our decision would lead to. We see the friend and the foe.

In this difficult period, who is thinking about their own future and preferring comfort zones instead of going into the 4-5 year struggle ahead, and trying to package it with other covers? This is not an issue to be sought outside. We are making our plans within ourselves. We are announcing our candidates. Work is being carried out regarding the Ankara and Istanbul candidacy. Our candidate in these provinces will be clarified within a reasonable time. I am ready for any duty my party will give me.

"DISGUSTING SLANDER WAS THROWN"

We are not happy for any friend who leaves. These are all sad. We are also aware of this. We are a political party that has received 10 percent of the votes in Turkey for the last 25-30 years and has been seen to double this vote. There is no such example. We have all seen how those who attempted this were swallowed.

Only one political party and political leader emerged who resisted this. She has been fighting tooth and nail for 6 years. Let alone saying 'they were afraid' because she left and sat at the table, much heavier, disgusting slanders were made.

We explained all of this one by one. We see how difficult it is to keep this structure alive. There is another perception created here. There are resignations in many provinces and districts due to the local elections. A large part of these resignations is related to candidacies. There are appointments stemming from candidacy.

"WE WILL FIGHT"

The İYİ Party has made a very clear decision. It is moving forward with a very clear will, standing tall behind this decision insistently. There are two basic issues we will not allow.

This is a political party; everyone will respect the decision taken, and we will not remain silent against those who try to discuss, manipulate, or interfere with the decisions our party has taken in different channels; we will fight.

"OUR ORGANIZATIONS WANTED THIS"

I visited 70 provinces. I traveled province by province. It was the eve of the election. It was a lost election, all of our morale was broken, we were all sad. There was also the emotional environment that it brought. We talked about the reasons for losing the election and our own internal issues. Our organizations very clearly expressed at that time that they wanted us to act on our own.

We already traveled these provinces with some of our deputies. Later, the incident was clarified with a GİK decision. Following the proposal Mr. Özgür Özel brought to us, we met with the provincial and district organizations once again and took their opinions.

The voter and the party's top management need to listen to, understand, and make decisions based on the opinions of the organizations. The party's top management has to look at it strategically. Organizations look a bit more at the moment and the day. We are a political party with 10 percent of the vote, holding 18 municipalities, and without government resources. We are a party that stands on the efforts of people who believe. We made this difficult decision today to ensure the change we desire in 2028.

SPOKE ABOUT ISTANBUL AND ANKARA CANDIDATES

I clearly expressed my opinion that we should go to the upcoming elections freely and independently. I emphasized that we are the only party that can do this, that will take the voter out of being squeezed between two poles for our country, for Turkey.

Friends who wanted cooperation also expressed their own opinions. In the end, the decision was taken. This is a struggle; if you don't do this today, others, not you, will decide who will be the mayor in Ankara in 2029.

As long as our party's decision and our institutional structure are respected and there is no interference, there will be no tension in any way. We are a political structure that uses a very good language.

In the election campaign, without badmouthing anyone, without hitting anyone, we will say 'we are the ones who will do it better.' We will say that we will manage Istanbul and Ankara much better. We have identified the prominent problems in the provinces and districts. There are two or three names in Istanbul. There is a name we are focusing on in Ankara.

News Source: 12punto