AK Party Istanbul Provincial Chairman Abdullah Özdemir's harsh response to CHP's IMM: They also disrupted the functioning system

AK Party Provincial Chairman Abdullah Özdemir made important assessments on the problems experienced in the CHP-run Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality administration on A Haber .

IN CHP THERE IS MUCH DISCOURSE, BUT NO ACTION

Özdemir reacted strongly to the CHP's Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality regarding transportation problems and municipal services in Istanbul. Stating that the metro projects in Istanbul have slowed down, the bus fleet has not been renewed and the traffic problem has grown, Özdemir stated that the current administration has condemned Istanbul to lack of service, and said, "They have a lot of talk, but no action."

Özdemir also emphasized that the AK Party aims to win Istanbul in the 2028 elections and shared the party's vision and goals for the future.

AK Party Istanbul Provincial Chairman Candidate Abdullah Özdemir (AA)

WHAT IS THE FIRST GOAL IN ISTANBUL PROVINCIAL PRESIDENCY?

Many valuable names have served in the AK Party Istanbul Provincial Directorate since its establishment. Abdullah Özdemir stated that they have taken on important responsibilities when taking over this duty. "From our perspective, there is an athlete in a marathon and he passes the flag to another athlete. That flag is taken to a higher place. We also want to carry this flag to a very good place," he said.

AK PARTY ISTANBUL PROVINCIAL CHAIRMAN ABDULLAH ÖZDEMİR: WE WILL WIN ISTANBUL AGAIN

Özdemir stated that their primary goal is the 2028 elections and said, "In those elections, we want to carry the AK Party to very advanced points in the presidential elections in Istanbul. Afterwards, we aim to include Istanbul back into the AK Party household in the 2029 local elections."

STUDIES ON ISTANBUL'S TRAFFIC AND URBAN TRANSFORMATION

Abdullah Özdemir emphasized that he has many years of experience in the field of municipality. He stated that he served in the Metropolitan Council for 8 years, was the mayor for 3 years and served as the President of the Istanbul Transportation and Traffic Commission, and said, "I know very well where a city like Istanbul was taken from and to what points it was raised. However, unfortunately, there is currently a major regression in Istanbul regarding transportation. Every year, 300-400 thousand new vehicles enter traffic. The current administration should have taken very fast steps, let alone exhibited a reasonable performance."

"ISTANBUL'S TRANSPORTATION INVESTMENTS WERE INSUFFICIENT"

Özdemir stated that traffic and transportation investments in Istanbul have slowed down in recent years and said, "In this 6-year period, there has been serious complacency and regression in rail systems, highways and other areas. The biggest reason for the traffic problem is the work that cannot be done."

Recalling that there was a traffic problem in Istanbul in the 1990s, Özdemir said, "The city grew and gained a serious population. The Marmaray, Eurasia Tunnel, Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge and metro works carried out by our government had taken Istanbul to a very advanced point. However, the metro progress rates carried out by the Metropolitan Municipality after 2019 remained very low."

AK Party Istanbul Provincial Chairman Candidate Abdullah Özdemir (İHA)

"METRO PROJECTS HAVE SLOWED DOWN"

Özdemir stated that the metro projects in Istanbul have slowed down significantly after 2019 and said, "When I took the Urban Transportation Systems course at Yıldız Technical University in 2004, the length of the rail system in Istanbul was 44 kilometers. In 2019, this figure reached 300 kilometers. However, there has been a major slowdown in the last 5 years. Except for the projects carried out by the Ministry of Transportation, the progress rate in the metro projects of the Metropolitan Municipality has remained quite low."

Özdemir stated that citizens were not satisfied with the performance of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and said, "In the past, large intersection works, tunnels and viaducts were constantly being built in Istanbul. However, we have seen that these have decreased in recent years. Our citizens also noticed this and showed with the election results that they were not satisfied with the performance of the Metropolitan Municipality."

Reminding that the current administration received fewer votes compared to the 2019 elections, Özdemir said, "This picture clearly reveals the dissatisfaction of the people of Istanbul."

BUS PROBLEM AND TRANSPORTATION CRISIS

Özdemir also touched on the bus crisis in Istanbul, saying, "There was an application called 'Where is my bus' in Istanbul. You could find out how many minutes the bus would arrive at your stop. However, as they do with everything else, they changed the name of this application and established a new system. That system is not working right now. Citizens started asking the question 'Where is my bus?' out loud. They tried to disrupt what was done, there was an existing system, you could have at least continued it. The biggest ordeal of Istanbulites right now is waiting for hours at bus stops. People in many neighborhoods have started to voice these complaints out loud. "