‘Within the CHP, where discussions on ’change” are ongoing, Group Leader Özgür Özel—whose name has been mentioned as a potential candidate for the party leadership—made important statements regarding current issues.
“I DID MY JOB WELL IN THE CHP”
Özel gave the following response to the question “Will he run for office?” on İsmail Küçükkaya’s show on Halk TV:
“If I were to say here that I am a candidate, it would not be right to make that announcement at this time—neither to the party, nor to the public, nor to the people with whom we have walked this path together, nor, above all, to the party chairman. I will see this process through, and we will announce our position paper—perhaps simultaneously, perhaps at a press conference, perhaps together with our team.”
“FIRST, WE’LL SHARE OUR POSITION PAPER”
“First, we will share our position paper with the public,” said Özel of the CHP, adding:
“When the time comes for us to run for office, I’ve already made a commitment. I’ll inform my family first, then the party chairman. In other words, the party chairman won’t find out from the TV. After that, we’ll begin the necessary process regarding the convention.”
“I HAVE SELF-CONFIDENCE, FAITH, AND DETERMINATION”
“I had no intention of doing so on the 28th,’ said Özgür Özel, adding:
“By the time we reached mid-June, I realized that the party’s act of pretending nothing was wrong was a great injustice to the voters. I saw our party’s failure to engage in self-criticism as a great injustice. I saw that our party’s failure to address the need for renewal and change was causing us to lose voters. I saw that things weren’t going well, both within the party and in the country. I said to myself, ‘I can take on that responsibility.’ The process we’ve been through has brought me even closer to running for office than I was back then. If a candidacy materializes at the end of this process, I have the self-confidence, conviction, and determination to see it through. I’m not dithering about the candidacy, but there is a process, and it needs to be completed.
“WE CAN COMPETE WITH MR. KEMAL”
We’re meeting with everyone we need to meet with. Starting with our party chairman, we’re doing our best not to hurt or upset our party members. No one burns down their own family home; some have left the party after carrying out the duties I’ve performed. It’s not about winning or losing. We can compete against Mr. Kemal at the convention. This is not treachery. Some ask, ‘Are you betraying Mr. Kemal?’ Failing to do everything necessary for Mr. Kemal’s success—that is treachery, and I did not do that. For Mr. Kemal’s success, I believed in him just as much as anyone closest to him.”
‘STATEMENT REGARDING THE ‘ADVISOR CRISIS’!
Regarding the appointment of Perinaz Mahpeyker Yaman—whose posts containing insults directed at Özgür Özel, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, and CHP Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu had come to light—as an advisor, he made the following remarks:
“The latest advisor has spoken out against Atatürk, the CHP, and the party chairman. This is an unacceptable mistake, and it amounts to a major structural problem. I reject politics conducted outside official channels. Politics is conducted by elected officials. Democracy means that elected officials govern the country and manage its institutions and bodies.”
“IN MY VIEW, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS OPPOSING THE OPPOSITION”
Özel also spoke about the ongoing discussions within the opposition regarding an ‘alliance for the local elections.’.
CHP member Özel made the following remarks regarding İYİ Party MP Adnan Beker’s statement: “If there is to be an electoral alliance, Ankara must definitely and unequivocally be given to the İYİ Party”:
“Our citizens will judge Mr. Adnan’s statements. If I say anything, I’ll break his heart. As I see it, there’s no such thing as opposing the opposition. Our job is to oppose the ruling party. Both the CHP and the İYİ Party should engage in self-criticism. ”The kind of language being used against him now is unbecoming of people who once stood together asking for votes from the public. There is a distortion inherent in the system, and we, too, have misread the situation. The courtesy between the parties has been torn to shreds. We need to fix this.”