03.08.2026 11:44
New Party General Chairman Özgür Özel, commenting for the first time on the resignation of Tuzla Mayor Eren Ali Bingöl, Çekmeköy Mayor Orhan Çerkez, and Şile Deputy Mayor Sacit Terzi from the CHP to join the AK Party, said, "This is not the subject here; we have left them behind."
New Party Chairman Özgür Özel attended the march held in Beylikdüzü for mayors Ekrem İmamoğlu, Mehmet Murat Çalık, and Resul Emrah Şahan, who were removed from their duties after being arrested in the 'corruption' investigation into the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality.
FIRST COMMENT ON THE THREE MAYORS WHO DEFECTED TO THE AK PARTY
Speaking during the march, Özel also responded to a question regarding the resignation of Tuzla Mayor Eren Ali Bingöl, Çekmeköy Mayor Orhan Çerkez, and Şile Deputy Mayor Sacit Terzi from the CHP and their defection to the AK Party.
Özel answered the question with a single sentence: "This is not the topic here; we have left them behind."
"WE ARE TOGETHER WITNESSING THE NATION'S EMBRACE OF ITS FUTURE"
Meanwhile, in his speech after the march, Özel said the following: "It is the 500th day of the March 19 coup. They detained our presidential candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu. On the same day, Resul Emrah Şahan and Mehmet Murat Çalık were also detained and have been in prison for 500 days. On the 500th day, as the Chairman of the New Party, we are standing by our friends, just as we did many times before in our previous party. We salute all imprisoned friends from here. We are fighting for them.
The support given by the nation is not for me personally nor for my party; this support is for the nation's desire to see this government change as soon as possible and for democracy and a modern country to be realized. We are together witnessing the nation's embrace of its future."