Turkish President Recep Erdogan announced the election won by him to start the “Century of Turkey”. He envisions this period as a time of prosperity, urging the opposition to respect the will of the people and “act responsibly in the name of strengthening Turkish democracy.”
Erdogan asked his opponents to put aside the controversies of the pre-election period and together implement the concept of “Turkey’s Century”.
“We are determined to put into practice Atatürk’s motto: “Peace at home, peace around the world”, we will expand the scope of humanitarian diplomacy,” said the Turkish president.
The president said that the new composition of the government, which will contribute to the implementation of the concept of the centenary of the Turkish Republic, will be announced on Saturday evening. The first cabinet meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 6.
“Turkey has successfully overcome one of the most critical election processes in its history,” Erdogan said in his address to representatives of 78 countries who came to Ankara to attend the Turkish leader’s swearing-in ceremony. Among them was the Bulgarian President Rumen Radev.
Erdogan expressed gratitude to his compatriots for the trust and the opportunity to serve the country and the people for another five years, the Anatolian Agency reported, quoted by BGNES.
“I will do everything necessary to justify the trust placed in me by the people, by our party and the political bloc. We are ready to serve every one of Turkey’s 85 million citizens, regardless of their political views, ethnicity and religion. I will continue to serve Turkey!”, assured Erdogan.
He called on every one of the country’s citizens to come together “in a period when the Republic needs unity more than ever.”
“On the occasion of the centenary of the founding of the Republic of Turkey, our country needs unity. I call on the residents of each of the 81 provinces for solidarity and unity. Today is the time for unity and strengthening the thousand-year-old ties of society from, time to work for more the good future for our children. We are ready to fulfill our promises to the voters, as we have done for the past 21 years,” said the Turkish president.
In the May elections, Erdogan won by 4% over the candidate of the opposition National Alliance, Kemal Kulçdaroğlu. Shortly before the vote, the Turkish court eliminated Erdogan’s most popular opponent in the person of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who was sentenced to two years in prison in the first instance. The court banned him from participating in elections on charges of insulting officials.
Imamoglu, who is a representative of the main opposition People’s Republican Party, was sent to court in connection with a speech in 2019 in which he said those who annulled local elections in Istanbul at the time were “fools”.
