The detention and subsequent arrest of CHP's Esenyurt Mayor Ahmet Özer on charges of membership in a terrorist organization has put an end to discussions on normalization in politics, which had been on the agenda for some time.
Following Özer's arrest, both the CHP and the DEM Party, which voted for Özer in Esenyurt as part of the “Urban Consensus”, issued statements of reaction. A protest was organized in Esenyurt Square with the participation of members of both parties.
However, there are also those who find the reactions insufficient. Former CHP Istanbul MP Gürsel Tekin was in Esenyurt for two days after the arrest decision. Tekin's name was mentioned as a possible candidate for Esenyurt before the local elections.
“What happens if you protest after you are arrested?”
After two days of observation, Tekin believes that the opposition failed to manage the Esenyurt process well and was not sufficiently organized.
Tekin said, “If 500 thousand people had come to Esenyurt Square on the day Ahmet Hodja was detained, Ahmet Özer would be sitting in his seat today. You had to gather tens of thousands of people there. What would happen if you protested after his arrest?”.
Stating that we are going through an authoritarian period, Tekin said, “The opposition should have A, B and C plans for every situation. Esenyurt is a district with big problems. They should have been prepared in advance for any problem that might arise here.”.