09.11.2026 10:32
Hülya Terzioğlu, who was appointed to the positions of AK Party Deputy Chairperson and Head of Social Policies after Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya’s resignation, met with party members in Çorum. Terzioğlu, arguing that social policies are the reason for the AK Party’s emergence, said in response to a journalist’s question about the fund investigation, “We have no doubt about our ablution, so we have no doubt about our prayer.”
Speaking at the meeting at the AK Party Çorum Provincial Presidency, Terzioğlu said that his party's being in power for a quarter of the history of the Republic was possible through service and being able to explain itself well.
APPOINTED TO REPLACE SAYAN KAYA
Terzioğlu was appointed Deputy Chairman of the AK Party responsible for Social Policies on October 1, 2026. AK Party Social Policies Chairman Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya had resigned from her duties in the party management at the end of September 2026 after allegations regarding stock market transactions concerning her came to the agenda. The appointment was announced by AK Party Spokesperson Ömer Çelik in a statement on his social media account.
“WE HAVE NEVER BEEN THE SECOND PARTY IN ANY ELECTION”
Terzioğlu, recounting that he began his political work in Istanbul, where he went as a student in 1991, during President Erdoğan's candidacy for Mayor of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality in 1994, stated that from that period onward people embraced Erdoğan. Terzioğlu claimed that with the public's support, the AK Party had never been the second party in any election.
“SOCIAL POLICIES ARE THE REASON THE AK PARTY EMERGED”
Reminding that he served as Chairman of Social Policies, Terzioğlu said, “Of course, this is a very honorable field, and at the same time one in which we must bear an incredible obligation and responsibility. It is a field that should even keep us awake at night. Because social policies are in fact the reason the AK Party emerged. Why? The oppressed, those who suffered the persecution of the headscarf, the poor and destitute, those who were ignored, our Kurdish brothers, our Alevi brothers, conservatives... I am speaking for those periods, our President, by forcing the momentum upward, gave each of them an identity and personality of a revolutionary nature.”
“WE DID NOT COME TO THESE DAYS EASILY”
Pointing out that Turkey did not come to these days easily, Terzioğlu used the expressions, “Our headscarved mothers and our headscarved sisters began to enter and leave public institutions and organizations comfortably and to take up duties. It did not stop there. Our country also experienced, together with our President, a social psychology that ensured everyone was an equal citizen. We lived through all of these. What things we saw, what things we lived through. Now let us not despair, but we did not come to these days easily.”
Stating that social policies require caring about the troubles of disadvantaged groups, Terzioğlu made the assessment, “Do you want to worship Allah? Will you find yourself a better field than this? This was the founding philosophy of this party, and perhaps that is why it turned out to be so fruitful. It was due to the prayers it received. Otherwise, did we not see earthquakes, did we not see a pandemic, were we not tested by coups? Did we not embrace the refugee influx as Ansar, did we not take our share of mass and global crises? What did we not live through?”
“SOCIAL SERVICES ARE NOT SUFFICIENTLY KNOWN BY THE ORGANIZATION”
Drawing attention to the fact that Turkey's social policies cannot be measured solely by the work of the Ministry of Family and Social Services and the AK Party Social Policies Presidency, Terzioğlu emphasized that all units and ministries produce social policy. Terzioğlu stated that what is done in the field of social services is not sufficiently known by the party organization and that they would carry out work in this direction.
“THE AK PARTY'S ONLY RIVAL IS ITSELF”
Underlining that they would rekindle the excitement of the AK Party's founding, Terzioğlu said, “Because the AK Party has only one rival: itself. If it has any trouble, it is again itself. If it has any single virtue, it is again itself. Therefore, within family privacy, we will come together in a brotherly way, hand in hand, arm in arm. We will tell of the beauty, not the deficiency. Everyone sees the wrong; we will tell of the beautiful. Speaking of bad things is bad; we will not speak of them. We will not speak of bad things either. We will speak only of the good, we will speak of what we will do.”
RESPONSE TO QUESTION ABOUT FUND INVESTIGATION
Answering a journalist's question about the fund investigation, Terzioğlu argued that President Erdoğan has not fallen short of any promise he has made so far. Terzioğlu said the following:
“We have no doubt about our ablution, so that we should have doubt about our prayer. As soon as our President founded the party, he faced a closure case and also saw prison. In other words, a meteor did not fall on our heads. We are trained for all of it. Our President has not fallen short of any promise he has made so far. We already see step by step that he has delegated the process in the best way, but let me say only this much. Governing the state is not the same thing as governing the street. Our President is moving forward by calculating, planning, weighing, thinking, and interpreting all risks in a way that will benefit the country's interests. We trust first in our Lord, then in our President, to the end.”
VISIT TO MUNICIPALITY AND NURSING HOME
Terzioğlu then visited Çorum Municipality and received information from Mayor Halil İbrahim Aşgın about the work. Terzioğlu later also visited the Çorum Nursing Home, Elderly Care and Rehabilitation Center, and the Barrier-Free Life Center. AK Party Çorum Provincial Chairman Yakup Alar also accompanied the visits.