The Mayor of Esenyurt has been arrested as part of a terrorism investigation! Here is his first statement in court.

CHP's Esenyurt Mayor Ahmet Özer was detained at his home in the early hours of the morning as part of an investigation conducted by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office's Terror and Organized Crimes Investigation Bureau aimed at identifying the members and activities of the terrorist organization PKK/KCK. After his procedures at the police station, Özer was referred to the courthouse and was arrested on charges of membership in a terrorist organization after his statement to the prosecutor.

AHMET ÖZER'S STATEMENT IN COURT REVEALED

In his court statement, Ahmet Özer stated that he did not accept the accusations against him, emphasizing that it was a political case, that he was an academic and a professor, that he had worked in various levels of the state for 40 years, that he had worked within the Ministry of National Education, and that he had held positions such as dean, founding dean, and member of the senate and board of directors at universities, and that there had been no investigations or prosecutions against him during this time, and that he had never even been to the courthouse until now, stressing that such a thing had never occurred.

"THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE IS BEING USURPED"

Özer stated: "After becoming the Mayor of Esenyurt, I have been successfully serving as mayor for 7 months by receiving the votes of one out of every two people, as it is a very large district. A political orientation is being made, the will of the people is being usurped, such a situation is unacceptable, it is being done with the aim of creating a public outcry to disrupt the order in Istanbul, and it will have consequences both politically and in terms of the municipality."

"I AM BEING ACCUSED WITH CLAIMS THAT LACK ANY DOCUMENTATION"

As can be understood from the file, I am being accused with claims that lack any documentation. For example, I am an author who has written around 40 books, some of which are related to regional development, some are novels, and some are about the Kurdish issue. I have published around 200 national articles and approximately 300 presentations. I am a person whose opinion has been sought on various national television channels in Turkey, and despite this, it is claimed and accused that my name was mentioned in the meeting with Öcalan in 2002 against my will. I am an author; anyone can read and express their opinion. Is my name being mentioned there any evidence? Does the mention of another person's name create this crime?"

"IT HAS BEEN FABRICATED TO REMOVE ME FROM OFFICE"

Özer, stating that he has no connection with any organization, rejected the accusations, saying, "This is an indication that this case is political. It has been said that not Mehmet Kaya himself, but his relatives are members of a terrorist organization; I do not know him. His mother has passed away, and I said, 'May your valuable mother rest in peace.' What does this mean? I do not remember saying such things; if I did, where is the crime? All of these have been fabricated and concocted with political attractions to remove me from office, and the groundwork for appointing a trustee has been laid. Even while I was still at the prosecutor's office, news such as 'a trustee has been appointed' appeared in the media. I do not remember whether I visited a place called Medyader; I am a person with a political identity, dozens of people call me every day, and I cannot even respond to some of them. I do not know who those people are; I cannot ask for the background check of the people calling me. Even when passing by, greetings are exchanged, and there are people who want to take photos where I go. A scheme has been drawn; what is my connection to it?" he said.

"REMZI KARTAL WAS A DEPUTY FROM VAN"

Ahmet Özer continued his remarks as follows: "I do not know a person named Faik Kaplan; I have a house here, and I had rented that house. According to what I learned from my daughter, the person who rented it is a relative of theirs, and if examined, I have received rent money every month. I do not know who this man is; my daughter, who is a lawyer, has ensured that my rent is deposited every month through real estate agents. I cannot know its origin or source. Remzi Kartal is also from Van; he was a deputy from Van, and we belong to the same tribe. After he went abroad, I have had no contact with him; I do not share a similar ideology or worldview, and I know his family is in Van. When I went to Van, I expressed my condolences to them; they will almost draw a conclusion from this as well; these are humanitarian acts we perform."

"WE ORGANIZED THE CONCERT WITH THE ESENYURT DISTRICT GOVERNOR"

Regarding the accusation related to a concert held in Esenyurt, Özer stated, "We organized a concert; we organized this concert together with Esenyurt District Governor Fatih Çobanoğlu and inaugurated it together. The first concert was held with the governor and his wife along with 46 associations. Dozens of artists were invited; I have never seen Rojda in my life except on that stage; she is someone who sings songs here and there. Dozens of people were invited, and I did not invite them; the officials there took care of these matters, and the officials arranged who would come and when. 450,000 people attended the festival; it has been said that slogans related to Öcalan were chanted by groups of 3-5 people there; if slogans were chanted, the police should have detained them. I did not see or hear it; if I had seen or heard it, I would have intervened. It is a huge area where 70,000 - 80,000 people came; how can I track who did what and where and what slogans were chanted?" he said.

"THE LAW MUST BE PROPERLY IMPLEMENTED"

Özer, stating that he is the mayor of the CHP and that rallies attended by millions are held where people chant slogans, emphasized that it is not possible to know and intervene with all those who chant slogans: "The law and justice must be properly implemented; if this does not happen, it will cause social damage and corrupt society. I hope you will make a fair decision in this regard; I was detained at 5:30 AM in a dawn operation. I am the mayor of a city with a population of 1.5 million; if I had been called, I would have come running to give my statement."

My office has been searched; although my lawyer expressed his desire to accompany me, he was not allowed inside. It is an office where hundreds of people enter and exit, and hundreds of magazines come in; I do not know which magazines are coming or who is coming. Why am I held responsible for a magazine that comes there? I do not know what is written in the magazine; I do not know if it is a crime or not; these are also claims. I am a scientist who has been raised in this country and is a professor at a young age; I am an academician, I have been a member of the CHP for more than 10 years, I ran for election in the last election, I worked as an advisor to İmamoğlu, and I served with Recep Yazıcıoğlu in the State Planning Organization. There has been nothing against me until now; I am being tried to be removed from my position by bringing up certain events from 10-15 years ago."

"I HAVE NO SUSPICION OF FLEEING OR HIDING"

Reiterating that the case is political, Özer stated, "I reject all the allegations and charges made against me. In 2016 or 2017, I received a document from the Mersin Chief Public Prosecutor's Office stating that I had been wiretapped; the prosecutor called me, and it was determined that nothing was found in that wiretap and that it was done unlawfully, and I was informed that I could file a complaint against the prosecutor if I wanted. I said yes, I would file a complaint if necessary. When I was previously wiretapped, no criminal evidence was found; I am a permanent resident, and I have no suspicion of fleeing or hiding. The evidence has largely been collected, and I have no possibility of affecting any evidence that may be collected.

"I request to be released, or if your honor deems otherwise, to be released under judicial control," he said.