President Erdoğan's 'Urban Transformation' message: 'We cannot afford to lose time'

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke at the 105th General Assembly of the Turkish Red Crescent (Türk Kızılay).

Highlights from Erdoğan's remarks are as follows:

"I commemorate with mercy all our brothers and sisters who were part of this movement of kindness but are not among us today. On behalf of myself and my nation, I express my gratitude to my brothers and sisters who wave this crescent flag in every corner of our country and the world."

May God be pleased with our Red Crescent, which extends our nation's helping and solidarity hand to every corner of the world. Today, the Red Crescent continues to maintain its presence wherever it is needed.

In 2024, the Red Crescent reached more than 33 million people domestically and over 14 million people abroad.

MESSAGE ON URBAN TRANSFORMATION

We are in the midst of comprehensive preparations for urban transformation, which is a matter of life and death for our country. We can no longer afford to lose time with anyone's whims on this issue. We are not in a position to deal with those who place their ideological obsessions before the safety of our nation's property and lives.

Unfortunately, they do great harm to our country by politicizing every issue. They simply cannot accept that issues like earthquake preparedness and disaster relief are national matters. We remember what happened on February 6. The group we call 'earthquake tourists' immediately began to exploit the situation. They attacked our state and our institutions with irrational statements. They produced fake news. They targeted our institutions that were working heart and soul in the field.

'THOSE WHO SLANDERED OUR AID ORGANIZATIONS ARE NOWHERE TO BE SEEN'

Just as they have done many times before, they disappeared after taking plenty of photos over the rubble. None of those who promised free houses or those who slandered our aid organizations over the earthquake are to be seen now. Our volunteer organizations are still there; they have been in the earthquake zone for 820 days.

When our brothers and sisters shaken by the earthquake looked around asking "who is there," they saw the Red Crescent, AFAD, and our municipalities that came from surrounding provinces. It has been understood once again who is doing the work and who is putting on a show.

I believe that our nation will continue to grow our Red Crescent without paying heed to base campaigns. There is no lie that the sun of our truth cannot melt.

News Source: 12punto