Mustafa Sarıgül makes statement on candidacy for Hatay! He also expressed grievances toward Ekrem İmamoğlu...

Turkey will head to the polls for local elections on March 31, 2024. In this critical election, the results in Hatay, as well as in Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir, are being awaited with curiosity.

Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairman Özgür Özel re-nominated Hatay Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Lütfü Savaş, whom he described as 'receiving incredible votes in rural areas.'

While Lütfü Savaş, who was protested on the anniversary of the February 6 earthquakes, announced that he would not withdraw his candidacy, CHP leader Özgür Özel pointed to polls, stating, "If we see something in the polls, we will intervene."

Following Özel's statement on polls, ORC Research conducted a public opinion survey in Hatay, both with and without Lütfü Savaş. In the survey, CHP Erzincan MP Mustafa Sarıgül was presented as an alternative to Savaş. While Savaş's vote share was 25.1 percent, Sarıgül reached a vote share of 36 percent.

Mustafa Sarıgül, whose name has been mentioned for the Hatay candidacy, answered questions from Hakan Çelik on CNN Türk. Leaving the door open for a Hatay candidacy, Sarıgül signaled that he could be a candidate if the party decides to move on from Lütfü Savaş, saying, "If they say we will give you a task in Hatay, do you have a chance to say no?"

"I AM STILL WAITING FOR THIS COURTESY FROM THE PARTY MANAGEMENT"

Here are the prominent messages from Sarıgül's speech:

"Until today, they haven't called me regarding Erzincan or any other point. I have been waiting for courtesy from the center until now. We are CHP members; we will work to win one extra vote. I don't ask the citizen who comes to me, 'Who did you vote for?' With the strength God has given me, I ask, 'How can I help you?' I am still waiting for this courtesy from the party management. We would have expected Kılıçdaroğlu's views to be taken as well. It is not our wish for it to be Ahmet or Mehmet. The CHP should announce such candidates that party members should say 'yes.' They should say, 'They announced a magnificent candidate here; this candidate will energize our city and get votes from the entire city.' I haven't seen a candidate that would make people say 'Wow.'"

EXPRESSED GRIEVANCES TOWARD İMAMOĞLU: HE DID NOT INVITE ME

If İmamoğlu invites me to his campaign, I will participate and work for him. I did not receive an invitation from İmamoğlu. I was not invited to the launch meeting. I do not go where I am not invited. Mesut Yılmaz contacted me in 2014 to say, 'Let's make Ekrem İmamoğlu mayor.' He called me 4 times, and we met 4 times. He said, 'Make İmamoğlu the candidate for Beylikdüzü.' I'm glad we helped him win. After he became mayor, he came to our home. Ungrateful people turn to stone. When the seats are gone, they disappear. I received my strength from God and then from the appreciation of my citizens. Just as I show my loyalty to Kılıçdaroğlu, I would like to see it from my friends in the past as well.

LEFT THE DOOR OPEN FOR HATAY CANDIDACY

Hatay has a connection with Erzincan. Hatay will not rise with Hatay alone; it will rise with Istanbul, with the contacts you establish with the UN, and with relations with the government. The mayor of Hatay will enter the container and will not leave until not a single citizen remains in a container. In the party, you do not ask for a task; a task is given. If they say we will give you a task in Hatay, do you have a chance to say no? I know the culture and traditions of the CHP. Just as Kılıçdaroğlu said, 'I want you to be a candidate in Istanbul'... I took one of the two seats in Erzincan and came back. When Özel calls you and says, 'I want to see you in Kars, in Şırnak,' no one has a chance to say no. Such a task did not come to me. I was not asked a question about municipal council membership regarding Erzincan. Just as they didn't ask me—and I am talking to my fellow MPs—they didn't ask our friends in the region either.

'LÜTFÜ SAVAŞ AND GÖKHAN ZAN' MESSAGES

(Lütfü Savaş) is the CHP candidate. Our duty is to go and support him. I have no dialogue with him. I only met him once. There is Gökhan Zan there, a brave man. Someone who is aware of his responsibility. He talks about healing the wounds in Hatay. You spend time, you become a laborer, and a bureaucrat comes and becomes a candidate. This is what upsets you. Those who are ungrateful in politics do not stay for a very long time. Those who prioritize party workers win. If you appoint those who are sycophants, this is the mentality of 'let it be small, but let it be mine.'

'NACİ GÖRÜR' PROPOSAL: LET'S ESTABLISH A MINISTRY, PUT HIM AT THE HEAD

On the other hand, expressing his view that a ministry of 'natural disasters and earthquakes' should be established, Sarıgül proposed that Prof. Dr. Naci Görür be appointed as the head of the ministry and said the following:

"We must establish a ministry of natural disasters and earthquakes. There are riverbeds in Turkey, and there are residences built on them. In floods, buildings remained there. This is a disaster. A ministry should be established, and when such an event occurs, experts from the ministry should go. All relevant ministries came to Erzincan, but these children of ours need to know how to work in a cyanide environment. I will take initiative for this. The commission will work away from political concerns to ensure that disasters do not happen again. We will make an appointment with our President. 'Let's establish the Disaster Ministry and put our professor Naci Görür at the head of it.' The ministry here should be above politics. The research commission will reveal all the details."

News Source: 12punto