19.10.2026 20:40
Speaking on October 19, Muhtars' Day, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan criticized the opposition and said that those who had previously underestimated muhtars had begun to imitate them. Erdoğan said, 'We see the organization of a Muhtars' Meeting by those who until yesterday changed their routes when they saw a muhtar—even if for now it is limited to election periods—as a valuable step toward strengthening the national will in Turkey and the opposition's reconciliation with society.'
In his speech on October 19, Headmen's Day, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made sharp criticisms of the opposition while also delivering messages regarding the conflicts surrounding Türkiye. Noting that those who criticized his meetings with headmen had over time begun organizing similar gatherings, Erdoğan said, “They had to accept it like lambs.” Drawing attention to regional tensions, Erdoğan emphasized that they had kept Türkiye away from conflicts and called for vigilance against provocations.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the program held at the Presidential Complex on the occasion of October 19, Headmen's Day.
Congratulating all headmen on October 19, Headmen's Day, Erdoğan congratulated the headmen for their efforts on behalf of Türkiye and the Turkish nation.
“WE HAD PROMISED THAT WE WOULD ALSO TURN THE PRESIDENTIAL COMPLEX INTO THE NATION'S HOME; THANKFULLY, WE HAVE REMAINED TRUE TO THIS PROMISE AS WELL” Recalling that they held their first meeting with headmen on January 27, 2015, in the same hall, Erdoğan said: “That day, we hosted 409 headmen from 17 of our provinces here. Afterwards, we experienced the joy of regularly hosting our headmen from all corners of our country in the nation's home. To date, we have come together with more than 40,000 headmen from all provinces of Türkiye, sometimes here and sometimes in our Exhibition Hall. There were days when we consulted on Türkiye's issues. There were days when we jointly assessed regional and global issues. There were days when, in the most difficult times, we put our heads together and opened a new path. There were days when we celebrated together successes that gladdened us all as a nation. There were days when we shared our troubles. There were days when we supported one another and gave each other hope. But for 12 years, we have always kept alive and vibrant that bond between the headmen, who are the outposts of democracy, and the Presidency, which is its zenith. We had promised that we would make the Presidential Complex not only the center of the state but also the home of the nation. Thank goodness, just like our other promises to the nation, we have remained true to this promise as well. Here today, once again, we embrace you, our headman brothers, and renew our pledge and covenant. May our Lord increase our affection, love, and solidarity.”
“WE WILL RUN WITH LOVE FOR ALL THE OPPRESSED AND INNOCENT” Stating that he too, as President, had come to his position through the will and favor of the nation, just like the headmen, Erdoğan said: “I want to express with all my heart that there can be nothing more important than walking the road together with you and being brothers with you, and I always give thanks to Almighty God for this. As long as the Lord grants me life, I will continue to be a comrade to you. Saying ‘One who runs with love does not tire,’ we will run with love and work with love for all of Türkiye, for each of the 86 million, and for all the oppressed and innocent who have turned their faces toward our country.”
Reciting the lines, “We have been in love with this nation since eternity; this passion comes from the Truth and goes to the Truth. It becomes the yeast for the Eternal State; every soul, in every heart, holds a passion,” Erdoğan continued: “This unending passion is the passion for Türkiye. It is the passion for serving the nation and the country. This passion is the very essence of the Turkish Republic's struggle for independence, freedom, development, and justice. God willing, this passion will smolder fragrantly in our hearts with our last breath and will be carried from hand to hand and heart to heart like a blessed trust. May the Lord grant us all to carry this passion worthily and to hand it down to those after us in the most beautiful way. I once again offer my gratitude to you, my brothers who have devoted your hearts to the passion for a great and strong Türkiye, and I sincerely congratulate our Ministry of Interior, which has been instrumental in this beautiful gathering on this meaningful day.”
“THEY HAD TO ACCEPT IT LIKE LAMBS” President Erdoğan stated that those who could not understand the unshakable bond between him and the headmen had, as they did with his every undertaking, also cast aspersions on the headmen meetings, and noted: “They used such disparaging expressions that they suddenly poured out, in all its ugliness, the indigestion of national will they had accumulated inside for years. Those who thought they were supposedly insulting us by saying ‘He cannot even be a headman’ could never accept the opening of all the doors of the state, beginning with the Presidency, to my headman brothers. Those who, despite the nation's favor, did not deem us worthy of the Prime Ministry and the Presidency, in fact did not deem you worthy of these positions either. The reason for their discomfort was never our chatting here; the reason for their discomfort is that you come here as if coming to your own home. The reason for their discomfort was that our headmen were not elite enough in their eyes, just like Aşık Veysel, who was not admitted into Ankara 90 years ago. Even though years have passed, some people's habit of looking down on the people of Anatolia has not changed. They could never bring themselves to accept that Türkiye has changed and that Türkiye is not the old Türkiye. So what was the result? Even if it did not sit well with them, they had to accept it like lambs. They learned to respect my headman brothers, who are elected by the direct vote of citizens and whom I describe as the base of the democracy pyramid.”
“WE REGARD THE ORGANIZATION OF A HEADMEN MEETING BY THOSE WHO UNTIL YESTERDAY CHANGED THEIR ROUTES WHEN THEY SAW A HEADMAN AS A VALUABLE STEP” Pointing out that, along with the Presidential Complex, the doors of public institutions and municipalities had also begun to open wide to headmen, Erdoğan said that this matter had not remained merely at the local level, that the meetings had a transformative effect in Turkish politics, and that, so to speak, a “headman opening” was being experienced in politics.
President Erdoğan continued his remarks as follows: “Those who previously belittled the word ‘headman’ have begun to imitate and follow us, sometimes out of obligation and sometimes out of embarrassment. Of course, we cannot measure how sincere they are. But even so, we regard the organization of a Headmen Meeting by those who until yesterday changed their routes when they saw a headman—even if for now it is limited to election periods—as a valuable step toward strengthening the national will in Türkiye and reconciling the opposition with society. Our wish is that this turns into a lasting change of mentality rather than a tactical move made from election to election. It is also a fact that imitation always magnifies the original. Whether forced or voluntary, as they imitate us, with God's permission, we will continue to grow and grow stronger.”
Erdoğan stated that throughout his political life, nearing half a century, he had believed that democracy begins first and foremost at the local level, and said he was pleased that the institution of headmanship was receiving the respect it deserved in Turkish politics.
Expressing that he was also pleased to have a humble share in this success, Erdoğan stated that the Headmen Meeting had made very serious contributions not only to rolling back the single-party legacy, top-down, oppressive, and arrogant mentality, but also to improving headmen's personal rights and working conditions.
"WE, AS THE STATE, HAVE BEEN COVERING OUR MUHTARS' SGK PREMIUMS SINCE 2017" Erdoğan, who stated that they spare no sacrifice so that muhtars can provide better service to citizens and fulfill their duties better, said that they listened to problems and suggestions personally from muhtars, took notes, and quickly took the necessary steps.
President Erdoğan, noting that muhtars already know very well what these are, recorded the following regarding the work carried out for muhtars:
"With the circular we issued, we ensured the establishment of a muhtar affairs department in metropolitan municipalities and a muhtar directorate in other municipalities. In our governorates, we assigned a deputy governor; in metropolitan municipalities, a deputy secretary-general; and in other local government units, a deputy mayor to closely deal with our muhtars. We launched MUBİS, the Muhtar Information System, so that our muhtars can submit their requests electronically. By declaring October 19 as Muhtars' Day, we began celebrating it nationwide as of 2016.
Salary and payments were two important topics we focused on meticulously. Remember, in 2002 the payment made to our muhtars was only 97 lira. As of 2026, we have raised this figure to just over 28 thousand lira. As for our muhtars' SGK premiums, we as the state have been covering them since 2017. By changing the energy expenses previously determined under the commercial tariff to residential status, we reduced our muhtars' energy costs. We ensured that all our muhtars can benefit from the Hotels and Social Facilities of the Provincial Service Association at the tariffs applied to ministry members. With the Presidential Decree we published in 2022, we included the Turkish Muhtars Confederation among associations working for the public benefit. We paved the way for our village and neighborhood muhtars to enter museums and historical sites in their provinces free of charge. "
Drawing attention to the fact that they also accelerated the construction of new service buildings, Erdoğan shared the information: "We completed the construction of 100 service buildings unique to their regions in our 30 metropolitan cities in 2023. In 2024 and 2025, we carried out the construction and repair of 130 muhtar service buildings at 51 locations within the scope of the provincial special administration. "
"WE HAVE MOBILIZED ALL OUR MEANS SO THAT YOU CAN SERVE CITIZENS UNDER BETTER CONDITIONS" Recalling that they opened Ankara Muhtar House, the first social rest facility project for muhtars, on Muhtars' Day 4 years ago, Erdoğan said that they also completed Istanbul Çapa Muhtar House, a continuation of this project, and presented it to the benefit of muhtars.
Erdoğan noted that they also met the security camera needs of all service buildings in places where women muhtars work, in line with requests.
President Erdoğan, stating that they made arrangements for muhtars' use in disaster management and decision support systems with the spatial address-based registration system, said: "From gun licenses to tourism, from culture to energy, in almost every area, we have mobilized all our means so that you can serve citizens under better conditions. God willing, we will continue to stand by you from now on as well. "
"WE ADD OUR NIGHT TO OUR DAY SO THAT NO HARM COMES TO TURKEY" Erdoğan, touching on the fact that Turkey is experiencing a storm of crisis with increasing violence in its region, continued his words as follows: "The Russia-Ukraine War just north of us will complete its 5th year in a few months. Israel's attacks on Palestine continue unabated despite the signed agreements. Before the tension in our neighbor Iran has fully ended, this time the fuse of a new conflict was lit in Yemen. The Houthis' attacks targeting our friend and brother Saudi Arabia caused the tension in our region to escalate further. In the attack they carried out on the airport in Riyadh, many of our Muslim brothers, including Umrah pilgrims, lost their lives, and hundreds of our brothers were injured.
We look at Lebanon; unfortunately, the situation there is not encouraging at all. Good news is coming from Syria, but the Zionist Israel is doing everything in its power to stir things up there as well. As I say, 'a ring of fire surrounds us.' The situation we are in is exactly like this. In such an environment of chaos and crisis, we work day and night so that not a hair of Turkey is harmed. Thank God, we have been successful in this so far. We kept our country away from the conflicts around us, did not fall for incitements. We did not fall into traps, did not yield to provocations. We successfully managed all these difficult processes in a smart, patient and common-sense manner. "
"WE WILL ALWAYS BE ON ALERT AGAINST THOSE WHO TRY TO BUILD WALLS OF DISCORD AMONG US" President Erdoğan stated that the tests of great nations are also great.
"As the Turkish nation, our struggles throughout history, like our victories, have indeed been very great," Erdoğan said, continuing as follows: "Today, too, we are right in the middle of a great struggle. In this struggle, as we put a spoke in the wheels of those who want to tear our region to shreds, they will never leave us alone. Just as our heroic ancestors did, as long as we courageously stand by the oppressed, regardless of their faith, not by the tyrants, they will continue to deal with us. Sometimes with their internal agents who appear righteous, like FETÖ, sometimes with their lobbies abroad, sometimes with their economic hitmen, sometimes with their pawns in the international press, and sometimes with their apparatuses on social media, they will come at us, try to distract us, try to divert us from our path. They will try to pull out our claws, try to make us give up our claims. By God's permission, we will not give them this opportunity. "
Emphasizing that they will not bow to those who want to establish a prosperity order for themselves by exploiting the world and turning the region into a sea of blood, Erdoğan said that they will be very, very careful against dark, dirty games and all of this.
Underlining that they will be vigilant against those trying to set Muslims against each other, Erdoğan noted: "We will always be on alert against those who try to break our nation's hope, demoralize it, and build walls of discord among us. I trust you. I pray that the Lord increases our insight and foresight. With these thoughts, I wish you a happy and auspicious October 19 Muhtars' Day once again. I thank each and every one of you for coming here and honoring the nation's house. I especially request that you convey my greetings to each of our citizens in the villages and neighborhoods where you are on duty. I wish each of you ease in your work. "
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