President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made important statements after the Iftar program with MKYK Members, Party Boards, Ankara Provincial Organization and District Heads.

Highlights from President Erdoğan’s speech:

“WE MADE AN EFFORT FOR A DIPLOMATIC SOLUTION”

I wholeheartedly congratulate our Ankara Organization and our municipalities. Our main mission is to be with our citizens. If we can heal wounds, cure troubles, receive the blessings of our nation, it means we can do justice to our position.

We cannot slow down our pace by looking at the lack of vision of profit-oriented criminal organizations. We will continue to run, we will continue to touch more hearts. We will continue to embrace our 86 million citizens.

The Palestinian issue has been bleeding for 80 years. After the massacres, our Gazan brothers are trying to hold on to life. The environment of stability in Lebanon has not been fully established.

Our vast region, stretching from the Eastern Mediterranean to the Black Sea, is struggling with uninterrupted crises. Added to all this were the attacks on Iran on Saturday. Many of our Iranian brothers lost their lives. I offer my condolences to the Iranian people on behalf of my country and nation. We did our best with friendly and brotherly countries in the region to prevent further escalation of tension between the parties. We made efforts for a diplomatic solution.

Bilal Erdoğan, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of İlim Yayma Foundation, Zafer Sırakaya, AK Party Deputy Chairman Zafer Sırakaya and AK Party Group Deputy Chairman and Manisa Deputy Bahadır Yenişehirlioğlu participated as panelists in the program called “YTB Artists and Writers Meeting” organized by YTB at Corendon Hotel. In the program moderated by YTB Deputy Chairman Abdulhadi Turus, artists and writers from the Turkish community from different cities in Europe talked about their experiences.

In his speech at the opening of the program, YTB Deputy Chairman Turus said that the Turkish diaspora in Europe has guests with very important characteristics.

Turus stated that these people gave the message “we are here” in the center of Europe with their brushes, pens, instruments and academic studies.

Emphasizing that there were special minds in the hall who knew both the technique and discipline of the West and the wisdom and emotion of Anatolia, Turus explained that this depth, nourished by two worlds, was reflected in the works and hearts created.

Turus stated that it is of great importance for Turkish artists in the diaspora to know each other and know that they are not alone, as talents who produce alone in their own workshops and work spaces all over Europe.

Underlining that the existence abroad is based on the understanding of companionship, Turus said to the artists: “You dream, you produce, you write.” he called.

Turus stated that they want to support the artists as much as they can to make their dreams come true, using the means of the state and the path opened by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

“MAYBE YOU CAN REVIVE A NEW HOPE FOR EUROPE”

Bilal Erdoğan said that there is a cultural corruption in the world and that this concerns not only non-Western societies but also the West.

Stating that the West is trying to keep and protect its own culture, Bilal Erdoğan said that an understanding that tries to make everyone similar to each other is being imposed.

Bilal Erdoğan said, “Let them listen to the same things, read the same things, watch the same things, wear the same things, eat the same things. This is such corruption right down to the inside.” he said.

Emphasizing that the way to protect against this corruption is to ensure that the nations and communities of the world live by embracing their own culture and identity without any complexes, Bilal Erdoğan pointed out that this will both contribute to the cultural diversity of the world and allow the dialogue between communities that are at peace with their own identity and culture to take place among equals and on the basis of mutual respect.

Bilal Erdoğan said, “When one side thinks that I am culturally superior, I am a more developed race, you are all inferior to us, oppression, injustice and unfairness arise, and wars arise from this. We see that this is the source of many wars we experience today.” he said.

Emphasizing that Türkiye has also experienced cultural corruption within a 200-year-long delusion of westernization, Bilal Erdoğan reminded that this process has serious consequences. Bilal Erdoğan said, “We said we would westernize, but it did not develop us. Instead of taking the knowledge, science and industry of the West, we tried to emulate it.” he said.

Pointing out that living as a minority in a country has its own dynamics and difficulties, Bilal Erdoğan called for embracing the dream that a more just world is possible.

Bilal Erdoğan said, “Europe also needs hope. It needs to find another paradigm. There needs to be a reality that everyone can understand that they cannot find peace by not liking minorities with this aging population and by blaming their own failures on them. Maybe you can revive a new hope for Europe.” he said.

Bilal Erdoğan emphasized that every work should be done globally and with self-confidence, and noted that this is valid not only in art and culture, but also in technology.

Bilal Erdoğan: “200 years of ‘you can’t do it’ have passed over us.” he said.

“POETRY SHOULD BE A MUST IN EVERY AREA OF OUR LIVES”

Sırakaya made evaluations about civilization awareness and identity construction and said, “First of all, we need to make a journey towards ourselves, get to know our own civilization values, and shape who we are and which countries we come from.” he said.

Comparing the point reached today with the first generation, Sırakaya drew attention to the way the first generation, which arrived in 1961, expressed itself.

Sırakaya pointed out that the first generation was a generation that refrained from expressing itself, that existed with its silence, not speaking and with its efforts, and said, “Today, at the point we have reached, it is extremely valuable and valuable for me that it has reached a position where it can express itself with its art, express itself with its poetry, and express itself as a result of what we have just seen.” he said.

Congratulating the young people at this point, Sırakaya said, “Therefore, first of all, I congratulate each of our brothers and sisters, but more than themselves, I congratulate their parents who raised them.” he said.

Explaining that each young person here represents a civilization that tries to create added value and build bridges in the country they live in, with their own identity, existence and self, Sırakaya continued as follows:

“I think that poetry is an order in which our civilization consciousness expresses itself more concisely. That’s why poetry should be a must in every aspect of our lives. Even if we cannot write, when we devote ourselves to poetry, it can express that we are and can be more people of heart, people of love, people of more affection.”

“THE CONCEPT OF INTELLECTUAL WAS IMPOSED WRONGLY ON US FOR YEARS”

Yenişehirlioğlu also argued that the concept of “intellectual” was wrongly imposed in Türkiye for years and said, “For years in Türkiye, you were made to believe that if you adopted the norms of the West and were westernist, you would be enlightened, contemporary and modern.” he said.

Yenişehirlioğlu noted that an intellectual identity can be created if a universal reading is developed after mastering all the parameters of the geography that creates a person.

Türkiye’s Ambassador to the Hague Fatma Ceren Yazgan, Amsterdam Consul General Mahmut Burak Ersoy and Rotterdam Consul General Sevgi Kısacık, as well as many guests from the representatives of the Turkish community in the Netherlands, attended the program.

HE THREATENED THE OFFICER AND FORCED HIM TO SIGN

Özcan, who gave the market officials 1 week to accept the offer, had the Police teams carry out intensive inspections in the chain markets in May-June 2024, after they did not respond within this period. A report was kept about the markets and additional time was given. 4 markets, who could not withstand the pressure of Özcan, who forced them to sign a contract, had to sign the advertising contract.

HEAVY PENALTY FOR THOSE WHO DO NOT SIGN

Officials of the other 2 markets refused to sign the contract. Thereupon, the police teams ended the inspections of the other 4 markets, even though the second inspection was mandatory, and started to put pressure on the 2 markets. The markets, for which administrative fines were imposed, were also banned from trading for 5 days.

BREAKING NEWS: Bolu Mayor Tanju Özcan was detained within the scope of bribery investigation | Video

THEY WERE TAKEN THROUGH OPERATION SAFAK

Within the scope of the extortion investigation initiated by the Bolu Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, a detention order was issued on Saturday morning for 13 suspects, including CHP’s Bolu Mayor Tanju Özcan. While the suspects were detained by Bolu Gendarmerie teams in a dawn operation, their mobile phones were also confiscated. Here are the names taken into custody… Mayor Tanju Özcan, Deputy Mayor Süleyman Can, Municipal Council Member Ali Sarıyıldız, Municipal Company Official Ergün Temel, Deputy Police Chief Hakan Yılmaz, Municipal Council Member Cahit Görüş, Municipal Council Member Mehmet Ağan, Municipal Council Member Naim Ayhan, Editor-in-Chief Tahsin Arslan. Mayor of the Municipal Council H. Ekrem Serin, Deputy Director of Zoning and Urbanization Yasin Bargaç, Municipal Council Member Buse Özkan, Municipal Council Member Sinan Pekcan.

HOW WILL THE PROCESS PROCEED?

The Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office announced that the investigation is continuing in many aspects and that the judicial process will take shape after the evaluation of the evidence.

In the file, the issue of whether municipal officials used the influence of their positions to put pressure on markets in order to benefit the municipal company is evaluated within the scope of “extortion by force”.

The teams of the Parks and Gardens Directorate of Tekirdağ Metropolitan Municipality cut down 20-30 year old trees, including plane trees, on the coastline, causing a great reaction in the city. Citizens who saw that trees were cut down at two different points on the beach rebelled against the situation. Citizens reacted to CHP’s Tekirdağ Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Candan Yüceer on social media. Especially in the summer months, when thousands of citizens saw that the trees under whose shade they cooled were cut down, they said, “You know, they were environmentalists? What a shame, it’s a sin!” “Where is the environmentally friendly municipality?” “It’s so sad. How many years have they been there? He didn’t develop allergies, but he did it now?

How will we breathe if there are no trees?” , “Let’s see that those who created a stir because two trees were cut down in Taksim should remain silent about this massacre of trees.” , “The view of the beach is gone. How long does it take for those trees to grow?” “Where are the nature lovers? Come on, get out again.”, “You haven’t had any useful work since the day you arrived”, “There was a shadow in the summer, I’m so sorry”, “You are an enemy of trees, a sculpture enthusiast”, “This is not pruning, it’s actually tree massacre”. In many comments, citizens stated that the process was not pruning but direct cutting, and that the trees were cut from their top points, and argued that this harmed nature.

Bolu Mayor Tanju Özcan held a meeting with chain market representatives in 2024 and demanded 25 thousand TL per branch for the I Love Bolu Foundation (BOLSEV) under the name of advertising in order to provide scholarships to students. It was claimed that he used expressions such as “We will take this money” towards those who did not pay. Representatives of the 4 major market chains, who stated that they did not pay the price in question, claimed that after this process, the municipality applied pressure with methods such as intensive inspections, closing customer parking lots and restricting delivery times. Based on the complaints, the Ministry of Internal Affairs Civil Inspection Board Preliminary Examination Report was completed on December 2, 2025. Özcan was asked about the statements here and the statements of the market representatives. Mayor Özcan admitted that he held a meeting with market representatives and called them to the Bolu Municipality service main building.

In response to questions about where and how the donation was made, he said, “I am the chairman of the board of directors of the BOLSEV foundation. The advertising fees of these markets are deposited to the company that is a subsidiary of the BOLSEV foundation. It is not deposited directly to the foundation.” In his statement, BİM Bolu Representative Saffet Karadağ stated that action was taken against 33 branches, citing 42 different missing issues, after they did not pay the requested money. A101 Bolu Representative Adem Keskin stated in his statement that he was forced to provide aid against his will. ŞOK Marketler Bolu Representative Aytaç Baycan also narrated the dialogues at the meeting and stated that Özcan said, “You will happily give this money. If you do not give it, I will take more from you.” CarrefourSA Bolu Representative Ahmet Gülsever submitted a written statement regarding the donation amount and words spoken at the meeting. Fees ranging from 15 thousand TL to 25 thousand TL per branch were requested in the advertising proposal forms inside the envelopes. It was claimed that when some people in the hall objected to the situation, Özcan said, “You will gladly give it.”

SUPPORT OR COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING?

Tanju Özcan, whose statement was taken as a suspect, said, “We wanted support for the foundation,” while the suspect BOLSEV Staff A.Ş. Chairman of the Board of Directors, Ali Sarıyıldız, said, “We made a commercial advertising agreement.” Suspicious Deputy Mayor Süleyman Can completely rejected the allegations, saying “We did not ask for money.”