Unannounced Business Visit: Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu Unseen by Many on the Street

Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, recently installed as the leader of the CHP party via an "absolute nullity" decision, is encountering significant opposition from party members across Turkey. His attempts to engage with the public have been met with rejection, with his wreaths being refused and his name drawing negative reactions from citizens.

Seeking to mitigate this public discontent, Kılıçdaroğlu undertook a carefully managed visit to local businesses on Rüzgarlı Street in Ankara's Ulus district. The visit was kept from the public eye, with neither news agencies nor the CHP's press team announcing it beforehand. Only a handful of media outlets were aware of the visit, and some learned of it and rushed to the scene to cover it.

During the visit, Kılıçdaroğlu met with Özlem Şenel, the head of Rüzgarlı Construction Materials Cooperative, at her ceramic shop. He listened to her concerns and shared breakfast with her. Notably, photographs of Kılıçdaroğlu adorned the shop's walls, alongside those of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and other political figures. Şenel herself has previously made social media posts critical of the elected CHP leader Özgür Özel and Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu.

Later, Kılıçdaroğlu entered a nearby office building, where he met with a few business owners accompanied by traditional davul and zurna music. However, many shopkeepers on the street reported not seeing Kılıçdaroğlu at all. Interviews with some business owners revealed that even those who did not support Kılıçdaroğlu felt they were not given an opportunity to express their views, as the visit was so controlled and lacked any public interaction or protest.

Cumhuriyet newspaper visited Rüzgarlı Street after the event and learned that the visit was highly controlled. A small team reportedly approached shops beforehand, asking if residents would like Kemal Bey to visit. Kılıçdaroğlu encountered no protests during his unannounced visit. Şenel, when interviewed, expressed frustration with public reports, stating the photos on her wall were not exclusively for Kılıçdaroğlu. She mentioned she had invited him long ago and was only notified of his visit the previous evening.