Özgür Çelik’ten büyük alkış alan konuşma! “Ne yazık ki artık CHP’li değilim!”

Former CHP Istanbul Provincial Chairman Özgür Çelik, speaking at a forum titled "Coming Together on the Path to a United Opposition" held in Istanbul, stated, "Today, there is a demand for change in Türkiye that transcends political parties and organized structures. Today, citizens, the people, are leading politics and politicians, dragging them along. There is a great demand for change coming from the grassroots in society. Being able to come together to give voice to this societal demand for change is invaluable." The second forum titled "Coming Together on the Path to a United Opposition" was held at the Ses Theatre in Istanbul. Artists, journalists, academics, politicians, and representatives from trade unions and NGOs spoke at the panel. Özgür Çelik, the former CHP Istanbul Provincial Chairman who was removed from office by court order, addressed the "March 19 operations" and the process related to "absolute nullity" in his speech at the forum. "There is an understanding in Türkiye that is trying to suspend democracy and make the ballot box symbolic, leaving Türkiye without options," said Çelik, adding that today the demand for change in Türkiye goes beyond political parties. Referring to the investigations targeting municipalities, Özgür Çelik stated: "It's been about two years; we've been experiencing a process from Esenyurt to Beşiktaş, from Beykoz to 19 March, from the raid on the CHP Istanbul Provincial Headquarters to the raid on the CHP General Headquarters. We said this: this is not a matter of a political party. There is an understanding in Türkiye that is trying to suspend democracy and make the ballot box symbolic, leaving Türkiye without options. We said, 'This is not a matter of a political party'... Turkey is at a historical crossroads, a very important turning point. Regardless of which political party we serve in, which NGO, which union we work for, if we are talking about justice, democracy, freedom, and a Turkey where people can live in peace, we must be able to stand side by side, shoulder to shoulder. Today, there is a demand for change in Türkiye that transcends political parties and organized structures. I state very clearly, today in Türkiye, citizens, the people, are leading politics and politicians, and they are following behind them." They are dragging us along. There is a great demand for change coming from the grassroots in society. There is a great demand for change among women and young people. When the March 19th coup took place, all of our party members were in front of the National Security Directorate, our Chairman (Özgür Özel) was in Saraçhane, and representatives of political parties were there; while we were discussing amongst ourselves, 'what will happen, should we stay in the National Security Directorate or should we come to Saraçhane?', the youth presented us all with a solution. They came from Istanbul University, overcoming the barricades, and those young people and women tore down the walls of fear in Saraçhane. In this respect, being able to come together is very important, very valuable, in terms of all of us giving voice to this demand for change in society. By uniting, by standing side by side, we will send this tyrannical government away together. We will rebuild the institutions of our Republic, we will re-institutionalize democracy in these lands. Together, we will build a Türkiye where 86 million of our citizens will live in peace, brotherhood, and prosperity." Following Çelik's speech, the slogan "We will win by resisting" was chanted in the hall. SUPPORT US FOR THE CONTINUATION OF OUR INDEPENDENT PUBLICATIONS 👇    / @yurttastv   #özgürçelik #chp #yanyana #birleşikmuhalefet