CHP Istanbul Chief Responds to Detentions with Documents, Calls Them Politically Motivated

Istanbul's Republican People's Party (CHP) Provincial Chairman Özgür Çelik held a press conference to address recent detentions, presenting documents to refute allegations of bribery and irregularities surrounding the party's congresses. Çelik asserted that the dawn operation, which led to the detention of 13 individuals, was a clear indicator of why a trustee was appointed to the Istanbul Congress and why the main congress was invalidated.

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Today's dawn operation is a litmus test for why a trustee was appointed to the Istanbul Congress and why the main congress was invalidated.

"The operation today is a litmus test," Çelik stated, highlighting that lawsuits were filed a year and a half after both the Istanbul Congress and the main congress concluded. He characterized the legal actions as being based on "social media gossip, secret witness testimonies, and slanderous accusations."

Çelik meticulously addressed the accusations against six individuals brought to the courthouse. He presented evidence to counter claims that Melda Tanışman Tutan, a former district chair, influenced votes through her brother's employment at a municipality, noting her brother was not a delegate and not even a party member at the time. Regarding Metin Kaya, an Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Council Member, Çelik explained that Kaya supported the opposing candidate in the Istanbul Congress, not the faction pushing for change, and thus could not have been seeking votes for change.

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Lawsuits were filed a year and a half after the Istanbul Congress. Lawsuits were filed a year and a half after the main congress. The lawsuits were filed entirely based on social media gossip, secret witness testimonies, and slanderous accusations.

He also defended Hayati Kaya, a council member previously called to testify but not charged, and Safi Karayalçın, a congress delegate who openly supported Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. Çelik refuted claims that Karayalçın received a bribe from the Beşiktaş Municipality for his support, showing that his company secured a tender after the congresses had already concluded, with no delegates yet chosen.

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They say, 'Your brother got a job at a municipality and in return voted for change.' Melda's brother was not even a congress delegate, nor a party member at the time. The documents are here; he got a job at the municipality a year after the CHP congresses.

Perhaps the most striking point of Çelik's address concerned an "internet cafe" project in Erzurum. Responding to accusations that the Beşiktaş Municipality opened a cafe in Erzurum in exchange for support for change at the congress, Çelik revealed that the project began in 2022, under the directive of then-CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, before the congresses even took place.

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Metin Kaya offered benefits to gather votes for change at the Congress and sided with change, they say. Look very clearly. Metin Kaya was a candidate for congress delegate on Cemal Canpolat's red list at the Istanbul Congress, so he supported the candidate opposing change, not change itself.