Özgür Özel fired back at Çamlı, who called it a 'bloody coup' in Cumhuriyet.

08.07.2025 15:22

CHP leader Özgür Özel reacted to AK Party member Ahmet Hamdi Çamlı, who referred to the Republic as a "bloody coup." Özel stated, "We cannot explain this disgrace with ignorance. It is even worse that a prosecutor has not initiated an investigation on their own. Someone who calls 1923 a bloody coup does not deserve that title if they are not reprimanded, held accountable, or investigated."

CHP Chairman Özgür Özel reacted very harshly to AKP member Ahmet Hamdi Çamlı, who referred to the Republic as a bloody coup. He stated that CHP deputies and 81 provincial heads would file a criminal complaint against Çamlı.

Özel said, "While the one-man regime is coming to the Parliament, CHP members and opposition parties are resisting, someone is making a ridiculous broadcast. The user's name is 'Yeliz'. This incompetent person presses a button on the screen. Here is Ahmet Hamdi Çamlı with his disgusting mustache. I apologize to all Yelizs in Turkey. He called 1923 a bloody coup and talks about establishing a new state. We cannot explain this disgrace with ignorance. He is on a line of treachery. We expected condemnation from Mr. Erdoğan and his party. There is an organism called Ahmet Hamdi Çamlı. The AK Party cannot condemn or punish a scoundrel who is hostile to the republic established by Atatürk. His words are the words of the AK Party. What is even more serious is that until now, no prosecutor has initiated an investigation ex officio. This state has given you the title of chief public prosecutor. Anyone who does not reprimand someone who calls 1923 a bloody coup, does not hold them accountable, and does not open an investigation does not deserve that title. May every penny of the salaries that this Republic has given you be cursed." he expressed his reaction.

RESPONSE TO BAHÇELİ

Özel also responded to MHP Leader Bahçeli, saying, "Bahçeli made a very important statement. He emphasized the presumption of innocence in his speech. He said that the indictment should be written as soon as possible. He expressed his support for broadcasting the trials on TRT. Mr. Bahçeli, I am not staging a coup."

12 SOLDIERS MARTYRED

Özel's statements can be summarized as follows:

"They went to search for the body of our martyred Infantry Lieutenant Nuri Melih Bozkurt. Our soldiers who entered a cave were exposed to methane gas, and we lost 12 of our Mehmetçiks; they became martyrs. I wish them God's mercy and offer my condolences to our nation and their families. The martyrdom of our 12 children in such an incident has both burned the hearts of our nation and deeply saddened and disturbed us.

There are many questions. It is evaluated that there is negligence, a chain of errors. Undoubtedly, there are lessons to be learned, but these lessons should have been learned long ago. There are questions that need to be answered, but those answers should have been found long ago. We have funerals of our martyrs in many of our cities, including Istanbul. Our friends and provincial heads are representing our party at these ceremonies.

"WE WILL BRING THE ISSUE TO THE AGENDA OF THE PARLIAMENT, WE EXPECT SUPPORT FROM ALL PARTIES"

After the burial procedures are completed, we will bring the issue to the agenda of the parliament. Although the Ministry of National Defense says that an investigation has been opened, experts on the subject express that this issue deserves to be investigated by the parliament, and that only if the parliament pursues it resolutely can the questions that need to be answered be clearly addressed.

They talk about whether a sufficient exploration has been made, whether our children were provided with gas masks and oxygen tanks, whether a robot or unmanned vehicle should have entered the cave first, that these vehicles are state-of-the-art unmanned vehicles in the inventory of the Turkish Armed Forces, and whether an explosion was carried out in the cave, and if so, it should have been foreseen that this explosion would ignite the gas inside, and that there should be a thorough investigation into the health professionals accompanying the soldiers, how many they were, what training they had, and the scope of the first aid materials they had.

We will submit our research proposal. We expect support from all parties on this issue. Because in the end, we all went for our national duty and fulfilled our responsibilities.

Additionally, some messages from our martyr contracted Private Özkan Özkanlı have surfaced in the public domain. It appears that he insisted on providing scholarships to some students in his hometown of Aksaray with his meager salary.

"WE WILL TAKE OVER THE SCHOLARSHIP GIVEN BY OUR MARTYR"

Through our Party Council member and provincial head, we reached both the institution that facilitated the scholarship and learned that he grew up without parents and was raised with a scholarship. As a contracted soldier, he calls the institution that provides him with a scholarship with his first salary and expresses that he wants to give a scholarship to a child who had to grow up as an orphan in Syria, just like him. We have obtained this information. As the Republican People's Party group, we will ensure that the scholarship given to the child of our martyr will not be cut off; we will take over that scholarship, friends.

On the other hand, some of the Republican People's Party deputies are following the Kartalkaya case today. I was there yesterday and followed the first part until noon. The Kartalkaya case is one that we closely follow and have opinions about in these podiums. You all will remember. When we were going to hold our group meeting in Istanbul, Turkey woke up that morning to a terrible news.

"THEY INCREASED THE PENSION BY 80 LIRA DAILY"

I said they love the rich. They obviously do not love the worker or the retiree. They increased the pension by 2400 lira. The lowest pension is 16,881 lira, meaning that from now until the end of the year, retirees will try to get by with 16,000 lira. The increase given is 80 lira daily. Throughout the history of the Republic, and even for centuries in these lands, the lowest increase given is the one that has been given. He used to say, 'I never let my retirees be crushed by inflation, I never let my retirees be oppressed.' The increase he gave does not even buy a bowl of soup. The AK Party has brought the situation to a point where a pension increase does not buy a bowl of soup in these lands. Before he came, the lowest pension was equivalent to 8 quarter gold. Tell all retirees this, memorize it, and make them memorize it. The power of repetition is important. I still go around Turkey, telling this everywhere. I am doing this calculation.

Seeing and still being surprised, how much have we melted, how much have we melted, the jeweler is surprised and cannot believe it; we look back and forth on the computer again and again.

"TODAY THE MINIMUM WAGE IS 3 QUARTER GOLD"

When the AK Party came, the lowest pension was equivalent to 8 quarter gold, friends. Today, the lowest pension is equivalent to 2.5 quarter gold. When the AK Party came, the minimum wage was equivalent to 7 quarter gold. Today, the minimum wage is equivalent to 3 quarter gold. We have met with all representatives of workers, employers, and tradesmen. Our esteemed professors and our deputy chairpersons have done their work, and we have prepared three legislative proposals.

One of them is our legislative proposal suggesting that the minimum wage should be 30,205 lira. All the signatures of our group’s deputies are under it. And we say that we had already calculated this at the beginning of the year. We said we are not below 30. With the 6-month inflation and the official figures of the state, the welfare shares that were not given last year and those not given for the first 6 months of this year, one is 3.5 percent and the other is 2 percent, again amount to 30,205 TL.

Our minimum wage proposal is here. On the other hand, we have signed and submitted our bill regarding raising the lowest pension to the minimum wage level together with our group vice presidents and all our deputies. On the other hand, there is an expectation for a flat increase for public employees, public retirees, and civil servant retirees. Last year, Tayyip Erdoğan promised a flat increase of 8000 TL. Not only did they not fulfill that, but if they do not increase anything this year, fulfilling last year's promise would mean a flat increase of 16,000 TL, which is the expectation of all civil servant retirees, and we have prepared our bill accordingly, which is on standby, while public workers are also waiting for a framework agreement.

For this, Hak İş and Türk İş have initiated a series of actions and a struggle calendar. We are closely following and supporting it. From here, we call on all political parties and deputies serving in the parliament, but despite the parliament's decision to work until the end of July, the AK Party has decided to work only until the 17th.

They will open olive groves for mining, and they will pass a few laws that the rich are waiting for. Without passing these laws, without increasing pensions, and without increasing the minimum wage—which we have a perfect formula to protect small tradesmen in the minimum wage increase.