{"id":282548,"date":"2026-02-10T12:28:26","date_gmt":"2026-02-10T12:28:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/?p=282548"},"modified":"2026-02-10T12:30:45","modified_gmt":"2026-02-10T12:30:45","slug":"ozgur-ozel-defended-the-blasphemous-messages-whatever-i-said-was-aimed-at-character-assassination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/ozgur-ozel-defended-the-blasphemous-messages-whatever-i-said-was-aimed-at-character-assassination\/","title":{"rendered":"\u00d6zg\u00fcr \u00d6zel defended abusive messages: Whatever I said was for character assassination"},"content":{"rendered":"

Speaking at his party\u2019s caucus meeting, CHP leader \u00d6zg\u00fcr \u00d6zel confirmed the messages allegedly exchanged with Ke\u00e7i\u00f6ren Mayor Mesut \u00d6zarslan, who had resigned from the CHP, and read them out one by one from the podium. \u201cEverything I said was aimed at assessing his character,\u201d \u00d6zel stated, claiming he had not made any accusations against \u00d6zarslan\u2019s family. He said they were marching toward power, adding that on this path, \u2018the rotten and the sound\u2019 would be separated, and regarding \u00d6zarslan, \u2018bad seed\u2019<\/strong> Using these words, \u00d6zel said, \u201cWe can take power with Zeydan Karalar, with Mansur Yava\u015f, or with Ekrem \u0130mamo\u011flu.\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u00d6zel arrived at the hall with Mansur Yava\u015f, the Mayor of Ankara.<\/p>\n

In addition to Yava\u015f, CHP mayors from the capital\u2019s 15 districts attended the CHP caucus meeting to demonstrate their unity and solidarity.<\/p>\n

\u201cI CALLED HIM TO THE HEADQUARTERS THREE TIMES\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dear friends, let\u2019s get to a hot topic. This government has disrupted the nation\u2019s peace, reduced people\u2019s livelihoods, and as a result, suffered its first defeat in the most recent elections. We had promised this when we first entered the electoral arena; we said that just as the late Ecevit, when he led his party in four elections\u2014two local and two general\u2014in the 1970s, managed to bring his party out on top in all of them, if I become the party\u2019s general chairman and fail to come in first in even one election, I will step down from my post and take the party to a convention.<\/p>\n

Five months later, we took our first test. Thanks to God, and thanks to all of your hard work and tremendous efforts, we made our party the leading party 47 years later. We also handed Erdo\u011fan his first defeat as party leader. He used to say this to Devlet Bey: \u2018Instead of the old T\u00fcrke\u015f, it\u2019s been 30 years, and he keeps losing but still hasn\u2019t stepped down. \u2019Come on,\u201d he\u2019d say, \u201cif a party can\u2019t emerge as the first party from these elections, let them step down.\u201d He\u2019d turn to Kemal Bey and say it, and he\u2019d say it to his other political rivals. This year, since his party didn\u2019t come in first in the elections last year, he hasn\u2019t said a word. He hasn\u2019t mentioned stepping down at all.<\/p>\n

Of course, we won 65% of Turkey. We won the entire Aegean region. In one region, the municipality is just\u2026 we managed to become the only party with a municipality in every region. Of course, in Ankara, we increased our number of municipalities from two for years, to three in the 2019 election period, and to four just before the election, up to 16. We have to give credit where credit is due. We have to give credit for that process to our Ankara Metropolitan Mayor, Mansur Yava\u015f\u2026 Sometimes, with the polls in hand, we\u2019d run back and forth four or five times a day during the candidate selection process, sitting together and listening to our organization. In some places we conducted polls; in others, special studies were carried out.<\/p>\n

But something happened that no one believed possible: in a region where it was said the CHP couldn\u2019t win more than three municipalities, we won 16. One of these was the Ke\u00e7i\u00f6ren Municipality. Throughout his term, numerous allegations were raised against the Mayor of Ke\u00e7i\u00f6ren. I summoned him to our Central Headquarters on multiple occasions\u2014three times on special agendas. And I said, \u2018These allegations exist; what do you have to say about them?\u2019 He\u2026 I said, \u2018If you\u2019ve done anything wrong, say so now; we have no business with those who engage in corruption. Turkey has placed its hopes in us; if there\u2019s something you\u2019re afraid of, tell us, and we\u2019ll take the necessary action.\u2019<\/p>\n

He said that everything that was said was slander, that he had never been involved in corruption or theft\u2014and he swore to that effect here, with President Mansur and our 15 mayors, our 14 mayors, everyone as witnesses; to each and every one of us, to anyone who asked, he denied everything with such solemn, solemn, solemn oaths\u2014involving his children in those oaths, dragging his family into those dreadful oaths and proofs\u2014until just three days ago, just three days ago!<\/p>\n

\u201cHe doesn\u2019t answer his friends\u201d calls; he\u2019s running away from the city\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Then reports started coming in from all sides that he was holding secret talks with the AK Party, that he was going to switch sides\u2026 We later learned, for example, that a city council member had told Mayor Mansur a month earlier: \u2018He made me an offer, asking, \u2019If I switch to the AK Party, will you join me?\u2019\u201d The name is known, the person is known, the date is known. And there are such things that, in a moment, completely different witnesses will come forward regarding this\u2014there\u2019s a group of surprise witnesses for this.<\/p>\n

And we\u2019re learning that he\u2019ll be joining the AK Party on Wednesday. The phones are ringing, but he\u2019s not answering the provincial chairman\u2019s calls, he\u2019s not answering his friends\u2018 calls\u2014he\u2019s fleeing the city. His closest associates say, \u2019Yes, he was joining.\u2018 And on that note, on that note, I called him the day before. A thousand and one oaths! The compliments he heaped on me\u2014\u2019Don\u2019t say that\u2018\u2014starting with, \u2019You\u2019re the greatest leader to lead the party since Atat\u00fcrk,\u2018 and then using profane epithets like, \u2019Am I that dishonorable? Am I that\u2026 that\u2026 that\u2026?\u201d and so on\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cMay God punish me if I have any ill will toward the family\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

The next day, he turns off his phone. So, since I can\u2019t reach him by phone, I send him a message. Those messages\u2014the ones where he says, \u2018Sir, he cursed my mother\u2026\u2019 God forbid! What mother? The very mother who gave birth to you would be ashamed of you for dragging her into every single thing you say. For dragging his mother into every single thing he says! Aside from that, what I\u2019m saying is aimed at assessing his character. If I have any ill will toward his family, may God punish me. But some people are saying from there, out of lies: \u2018He insulted our national values, he insulted this\u2026\u2019 Well, you know\u2026 \u2018He insulted our sacred values, he insulted my family.\u2019 Prove one, prove one!<\/p>\n

He read the private messages one by one<\/strong><\/p>\n

Look, it wasn\u2019t me\u2014he\u2019s the one who leaked it\u2026 If I were going to leak this, I\u2019d talk to him first, wouldn\u2019t I? Look at the messages\u2014I\u2019d be so scared, so ashamed. Look at the messages. Where is the CHP Chair? Where are certain people? What kind of party is the CHP? What kind of party are certain people? The document leaked against us and supposedly to be submitted to court\u2014you\u2019re so deep in a mistake that you\u2019re trying to crawl into the laps of those you called thieves yesterday, those you called scoundrels, those who called you a thief, those who attacked you. They\u2019re deceiving you, son, they\u2019re deceiving you.<\/p>\n

If I have a flaw, if I\u2019ve stolen something\u2026 If you have a flaw, if you\u2019ve stolen something\u2026 I can\u2019t accept that anyway. But if you\u2019re going to those who accept you for your theft, you\u2019re already on the wrong path. Now these are the things I\u2019ll be ashamed of, and the proof of it\u2026<\/p>\n

Transcripts of our conversations\u2014what I said to him and what he said\u2014that he leaked:<\/p>\n

\u201cYou came to me and said, \u2018Mr. Chairman, I\u2019ve done nothing wrong, I\u2019m not at fault\u2014they\u2019re lying and slandering me. Don\u2019t believe them. Trust me: I haven\u2019t wronged anyone, I haven\u2019t taken bribes, and I haven\u2019t stolen anything.\u2019\u201d.<\/p>\n

I believed you too. Now you\u2019re giving in to those who don\u2019t believe you\u2014those who supposedly slandered you. Or by going to them, you\u2019re admitting that you lied to me and that you\u2019re actually a thief.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t want to believe this. I want to see the Mesut whose eyes were burning with passion that day and who said he believed. But I realize that even that Mesut was a lie. I\u2019ve realized that you\u2019re a thief.<\/p>\n

And by making deals with those who know about your theft and those who witnessed it, you\u2019re trying to save yourself. In that case, you\u2019ve gotten what you deserve.<\/p>\n

Know this, Mesut: I need a Mesut who comes to my office, looks me straight in the eye, speaks honestly, and says he hasn\u2019t been involved in theft, graft, or bribery.<\/p>\n

If that Mesut has deceived me, then may his path be clear. I will never, ever have anything to do with thieves or corrupt officials. That\u2019s the AK Party\u2019s business. Those who embrace you, those who embrace you\u2014those who filed a criminal complaint against you will have to eat their words; we don\u2019t do things like that.<\/p>\n

This is not the era of thieves. This is not the era of the AK Party. That era is coming to an end. Once our revolution begins, I will not forgive you from this moment on, no matter how much you beg or how much you burn. Even if you turn back, I will not forgive you. You have just admitted that you are a thief, a corrupt official, and a scoundrel. You have sought refuge with those who speak such words and turned your back on those who defend you; you have made your choice. Since you were a thief, why did you string us along? Good riddance.<\/p>\n

\u201dBut the day will come, the tables will turn, and you\u2019ll fall into my hands. If I show you mercy on that day, may I be cursed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTHE CHP CHAIRMAN\u2019S STANCE ON THEFT AND THE AK PARTY\u2019S APPROACH ARE CLEAR FOR ALL TO SEE\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

These are the messages Mr. Mesut obtained from his phone, which he said he would submit to the court and has sent to the press. The CHP Chairman\u2019s stance on the theft and corruption revealed in the messages\u2014which he leaked knowing they were meant to remain private between two individuals\u2014and the AK Party\u2019s approach are clear for all to see.<\/p>\n

There are witnesses here now. You know how they say, \u2018The party leader told me to do this and that, so I\u2019m switching parties; otherwise, I wouldn\u2019t have.\u2019 Everyone knows it, we all know it\u2026 Are there any Ankarag\u00fcc\u00fc fans here?<\/p>\n

The leaders and prominent members of Ankarag\u00fcc\u00fc\u2019s three fan groups\u2014Gecekondu, Sol A\u00e7\u0131k, and Bekar Evi \u00c7ocuklar\u0131\u2014are here. They told us they wanted to bring 3,000 people into the Parliament, but Aylin Han\u0131m (Ankara MP Aylin Nazl\u0131aka) was only able to get that many in.<\/p>\n

This is open to all news agencies: ANKA, Anadolu Agency, Do\u011fan News Agency, \u0130hlas News Agency\u2026 You can speak with them in the courtyard. Just yesterday, the tribune leaders were thinking: \u2018Once this scandal breaks and the public turns against us, they\u2019ll excuse it,\u2019 so relying on the guarantee they received on Sunday, they said: \u2018I\u2019m joining the AK Party group on Wednesday; stand by us as Ankarag\u00fcc\u00fc. I\u2019ll meet all your needs.\u2019 What did the fan leader say? \u201cI\u2019ll take 10,000 dollars a month from you too!\u201d Go ahead, do the interview and run it as a last-minute story! Go ahead!<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s trying to hire someone just so they can come up with a slogan for him\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ask the Ankarag\u00fcc\u00fc fan leaders. He knows that when he passes by on Wednesday, he won\u2019t be able to take even a single matchstick from the CHP with him. It\u2019s as if he thinks he can buy the club\u2014the club of the glorious, honorable Atat\u00fcrk, the club that proudly bears Atat\u00fcrk\u2019s name on its chest\u2014with money; he\u2019s trying to hire people just so they\u2019ll chant slogans for him. Yet Ankarag\u00fcc\u00fc stands not behind such shamelessness, but behind its honorable past. Behind Atat\u00fcrk\u2019s party!<\/p>\n

\u201cTHIS LITTLE RASCAL TOOK THE PEOPLE\u2019S HONEST VOTES AND IS TRYING TO RUN AWAY\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

There are two issues here that are going to be talked about a lot\u2014and have already been talked about a lot\u2026 You know that Tosuncuk\u2014Tosuncuk (with a nod to \u00c7iftlik Bank)\u2014the one who took people\u2019s money and ran? Well, this Tosuncuk has taken people\u2019s hard-earned votes and is trying to run off with them too!<\/p>\n

Now, AKP Parliamentary Member Fatih \u00dcnal has filed a criminal complaint regarding this matter, citing \u2018bid-rigging\u2019 and various other charges in cases numbered 207871, 864, 115177, and 115178. Osman G\u00f6k\u00e7ek (Member of Parliament from Ankara) has filed criminal complaints regarding this matter under case number 115707.<\/p>\n

And when I called him on Friday evening, he said to me: \u2018I won\u2019t do that\u2014it\u2019s that much gold\u2026 Just send a tweet; I have something to do on Monday\u2014can\u2019t I just wait until then?\u2019 Yesterday, regarding his term, the prosecutor\u2019s office launched an investigation\u2026 or rather, an inspector was assigned to determine whether or not to grant permission for the investigation.<\/p>\n

And Turgut Alt\u0131nok, the former mayor of Ke\u00e7i\u00f6ren, says: \u2018The mayor of Ke\u00e7i\u00f6ren who goes door to door to switch parties.\u2019 He says: \u2018For example, how is it that the contract for the water fountain with light and sound effects\u2014which was given away to curry favor with someone in the name of switching parties\u2014ends up going to a single company?\u2019 In other words, he says: \u2018You\u2019re going door to door to join our party, and for that, you\u2019re awarding the contract solely to one of us\u2014someone from the AK Party,\u2019 he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose who resist are lying down like lions, while the others are turning tail and defecting to the AK Party\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve asked this over and over. They say, \u2018It\u2019s this Porta\u015f guy.\u2019 How many times has Porta\u015f been audited? So many inspectors have come and gone. But what Porta\u015f doesn\u2019t have, he has himself\u2014or maybe it\u2019s that guy in the high heels; he tells everyone the same thing. Those who resist are lying low like lions; Zeydan Karalar is lying low and then coming out, while the other one is switching sides and joining the AK Party!<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are caught up in a disgraceful political situation\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m asking the AK Party. If what Turgut Alt\u0131nok, Osman G\u00f6k\u00e7ek, or Fatih \u00dcnal said about this is a slander, then you\u2019ve been caught red-handed in this smear campaign, haven\u2019t you? If Mesut is an honest man, then you\u2019ve been caught red-handed in slander.<\/p>\n

Mesut, if this slander is true, if these allegations are true, then if Mesut is corrupt, you\u2019re engaging in a politics so shameless that you threaten him with a crackdown while he\u2019s corrupt, yet when it comes to someone like Ayd\u0131n, you\u2019re willing to clean him up. Come on then! Come on then, Mr. Tayyip, come on! Make the announcement tomorrow, pin on the badge. Will you confess to the dishonor of making slanderous accusations, or the dishonor of whitewashing a thief when he comes to you? Pin on the badge so I can see! Pin on the badge so I can see!<\/p>\n

You cannot derail this journey to power with two fraudsters, slander, false witnesses, and smear campaigns. It\u2019s that clear\u2014here, right in front of you, the leader of the main opposition is saying it plainly: You will have to admit to one of these two things. You\u2019ve been caught red-handed. By trying to pull a fast one with Mesut, you\u2019ve exposed yourselves in all the schemes you\u2019ve been running and in the politics you\u2019ll pursue from now on. Let the people see what these are all about.<\/p>\n

\u201cTHERE ARE NO RIGHT-WINGERS OR LEFT-WINGERS IN THIS MATTER\u2014THERE ARE ONLY HONEST PEOPLE AND DISHONEST ONES!\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

As for us\u2026 A few columnists wrote today: \u201cSir, aren\u2019t those who nominated the candidates going to engage in self-criticism, or aren\u2019t they going to do this or that\u2026\u201d Look, if any self-criticism is to be made, I\u2019ll be the one to do it all. It\u2019s all on me. Why?<\/p>\n

Her \u015fehre ayr\u0131 ayr\u0131 \u00e7al\u0131\u015fm\u0131\u015f\u0131z. 47 y\u0131l sonra partiyi birinci parti yapm\u0131\u015f\u0131z. Belediyelerin %65’ini alm\u0131\u015f\u0131z. Al\u0131nmaz denen yerlerde rekorlar k\u0131rm\u0131\u015f\u0131z. Ondan sonra bir tane bozuk tohum, bir tane k\u0131r\u0131k par\u00e7a, bir bilmem ne yap\u0131nca a\u011fz\u0131n\u0131z\u0131 a\u00e7acaks\u0131n\u0131z bir grup…<\/p>\n

Having been active in other political parties in the past, the Conservative Democrats and Nationalist Democrats\u2014whose colors converge under the Turkish flag in the Turkey Alliance\u2014are all being lumped together in an unprecedented way, as if they were all part of the same evil\u2026<\/p>\n

Where did Topuklu Efe come from, friends? We come straight from the Women\u2019s Branch\u2014from our ranks, from our seats in parliament. The mayor of \u015eehitkamil in Gaziantep has seven generations of CHP members in his family. This isn\u2019t about left or right\u2014it\u2019s about the honorable and the dishonorable!<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t take a rotten seed like Mesut to power, but\u2026\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Verilen b\u00fct\u00fcn kararlar\u0131n sorumlulu\u011funu al\u0131yorum. Verilen b\u00fct\u00fcn kararlar\u0131n sorumlulu\u011funu al\u0131yorum. %65 belediyeyi al\u0131nca konvoy yapacaks\u0131n, halaya duracaks\u0131n; bir tane bozuk tohum par\u00e7a k\u0131r\u0131nca d\u00f6n\u00fcp “\u00f6zele\u015ftiri \u00f6zele\u015ftiri” yapacaks\u0131n.<\/p>\n

A party on its way to power will have its share of both successes and failures. The weak are weeded out, and the strong are the ones who march toward power. It is the strong who march toward power!<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t take power with a rotten seed like Mesut, but you can with Zeydan! You can with Mansur Yava\u015f! You can with Mayor Ekrem! We march with the honorable, the hardworking, the Atat\u00fcrkists, the Nationalists, the Conservatives, the Right-wingers and the Left-wingers, the Kurds and the Turks, the Alevis and the Sunnis\u2014with honest people, with brave people! Come on, Mr. Mayor, let\u2019s march to power, let\u2019s march to power!<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“\u0130ktidara bozuk tohum Mesut’la gidilmez ama Zeydan’la gidilir! Mansur Yava\u015f’la gidilir! Ekrem Ba\u015fkan’la gidilir!”<\/p>","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":282549,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[285],"tags":[15,289,288],"class_list":["post-282548","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-politika","tag-chp","tag-manset","tag-ozgur-ozel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/282548","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=282548"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/282548\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":282552,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/282548\/revisions\/282552"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/282549"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=282548"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=282548"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=282548"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}