JOINT PRESS RELEASE BY 11 METROPOLITAN MAYORS (October 1, 2022)

Our 11 Metropolitan Municipalities continue to generate services focusing on citizens’ basic problems that have been neglected for years, based on the principle of social municipal work, with an understanding of inclusive, transparent and just government.

Unfortunately, our municipalities are subjected to political pressures and hindering attempts by the party in power while they continue to serve all citizens without any discrimination. The party in power not only takes decisions that undermine our municipalities’ authorities and revenues, but also tries to build pressure through unlawful prosecutions and defame our mayors through baseless accusations. Our mayors are plotted against through invented and far-fetched perception management attempts. Our mayors are targeted with impertinent declarations that have nothing to do with civil service ethics. Meanwhile, we have recently suffered a terrorist attack in Mersin.

We condemn those who perpetrated this attack and those who try to take advantage of it for their own political interests.

We also strongly condemn all circles who even pushed it as far as associating our Mersin Metropolitan Municipality and CHP with terrorism. The Republican People’s Party was founded on the battlefield, not in law offices. Nobody has the authority to try to identify Atatürk’s political party with terrorism. Those who linked arms with terrorist organizations; nourished and cherished Fethullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), and negotiated with PKK cannot and will not lecture us in this regard.

Those who really constitute a national security problem are the ones who claim they know every little detail about the terrorists down to their shoe size and still fail to stop their attacks and use our martyrs for their own political agenda. The prosecutions started against the Mayor of Izmir Metropolitan Municipality are the product of this very understanding. We know that those who could not take part in the glorious celebrations for the 100th anniversary of Izmir’s liberation are upset and envious. We know that these prosecutions are a way of defaming our mayors. All of our metropolitan mayors hereby underline that we will never be discouraged by these defamation campaigns. We reproach the person sitting in the chair of the president for his words such as “impertinent” and “seamy” against our metropolitan mayor and we consider it an insult against the people of Izmir and the people of the entire country.

This policy of pressure whose only motive is receiving more votes has now turned into organized malice setting back services offered to our citizens. In our meeting, we thoroughly deliberated on these problematic attempts and emphasized our will and determination for overcoming all obstacles and pressures working together with the people.

We hereby warn the party in power once more:

An attack against one of our mayors is an attack against all of our mayors. We know that these pressures will increase and promise this to our people: We will not hesitate to use all of our democratic and legal rights in face of these pressures. The pressures targeting our elected mayors boost both our solidarity and our determination. These pressures are the last desperate efforts of a party that is about to lose power.

May our people rest assured:

We shall keep on overcoming all obstacles alongside our people and serving them with determination.