The Chairman of CHP, Özgür Özel, visited the Dumlupınar Martyrs’ Cemetery.

CHP Chairman Özgür Özel visited the Dumlupınar Martyrs’ Cemetery in the Dumlupınar district of Kütahya.

During his visit to the Dumlupınar Martyrs’ Cemetery, CHP Chairman Özel laid carnations on the graves of the martyrs and prayed. Later, in a press statement, Özel said, “We will be in Dumlupınar on August 30. Every year, I have made an effort to participate in the ceremonies in Dumlupınar and the ceremonies in Afyon on August 26. This year, for the first time, I participated in this ceremony as the chairman of the CHP. We are here with our provincial chairpersons from Uşak, Afyon, Kütahya, our mayors, and the Mayor of Dumlupınar. In previous years, I felt great sadness that a district like Dumlupınar was not represented in the CHP, and that our party, founded by Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, did not include the cities that are the architects of all the victories and successes, where the national struggle and the Great Offensive began, and the city where the enemy armies fled towards İzmir. Today, we are experiencing great pride together with all our friends. As the CHP, we wanted to be here in full force on this historic day.”

Özel criticized not being given the right to speak at the official ceremonies in Dumlupınar, stating, “In fact, in our program, we were supposed to participate in the official ceremonies, that is, in the part attended by the state protocol; otherwise, as you have been following since this morning, very meaningful visits are being made, and we were going to attend the official ceremonies as well. We communicated this too. Unfortunately, there is a prevailing mindset in the Justice and Development Party recently. They have decided that good relations, meaning the greetings of individuals, politicians, and leaders with each other, attending all ceremonies together, sitting together at ceremonies, and constructive speeches at ceremonies benefit the CHP, and they have decided to harden their stance. In fact, a lot of information comes, whether appropriate or not. They say that this process has benefited them, and we must continue the demonization, polarization, and hardening policies. Here, we were attempted to be provoked. That was the case; first, they said I would come alone, and only the governor would speak. Then they said the Minister of Sports would come and speak. They said the Minister of Interior would come and speak as well. We are well ahead of them in the protocol, we are in the third row, but they imply that we will not speak, we will listen. Of course, since we were not given the opportunity to speak during the protocol speeches, we anticipated that the parties accompanying us, who have now won this place for the CHP, would react. They even walk to the podium and directly from the governor’s mouth they say, ‘necessary measures should be taken, microphones should be turned off,’ etc. We will walk to that podium. We will walk there when our people say so. It may happen a year later, two years later. If they escape too much, it may happen three years later, but we will walk to that podium. On that day, there will be a CHP president at these ceremonies, there will be CHP ministers, and there will be a CHP speaker of the parliament. CHP mayors will certainly speak. They say they are applying a triple protocol, which slips from their mouths. In the triple protocol, there are now CHP mayors here.”