President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended a meeting in Izmir on Saturday, stating that the attendance was magnificent both at the rally and at the technology festival Teknofest in Istanbul which he attended earlier on the same day as the election day for Türkiye approaches fast.
At the rally in Izmir's Gündoğdu Square, Erdoğan said he returned to attending events in person after resting and participating in programs via video link from Ankara the last few days on the advice of his doctors.
"We were together with 360,000 people in Istanbul Yeşilköy today," Erdoğan said. "There was a magnificent turnout. The youth know very well with whom to walk and to where and how."
Erdoğan said they came to Izmir right after the event in Istanbul.
Republican People's Party (CHP) and its candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the main rival of incumbent President Erdoğan for the May 14 elections, was the focus of Erdoğan's speech.
"(For 21 years) we have not been afraid of the threats of tutelage, we have not been afraid of the attacks of terrorist organizations. We did not go and meet with terrorist organizations, with their extensions in the parliament, like (Kılıçdaroğlu)," Erdoğan said, pointing towards the pro-PKK Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) and its endorsement of Kılıçdaroğlu.
A top official from Kılıçdaroğlu's CHP recently confessed to the collaboration between Kılıçdaroğlu and the HDP, thus by association with the PKK, which keeps a stronghold in the Qandil Mountains in northern Iraq from where it devises and launches attacks on Türkiye, as well as nearby cities and towns.
The PKK is designated as a terrorist organization in the U.S., the European Union and Türkiye. It has been waging a bloody terrorist campaign against the country for four decades, attacking security personnel and civilians and massacring over 40,000 people since 1984.
"What did Mr. Kemal meet about with Qandil's representatives in the parliament, behind closed doors? Explain this. Does such a person suit Izmir?"
Erdoğan, recalled Kılıçdaroğlu's "Izmir deserves better," remarks. He pointed out the city's struggle with rains and flooding due to its infrastructure. "Izmir Metropolitan Municipality is at your hands. What happens to Izmir in every rain?"
Erdoğan noted the numerous projects and investments that the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government has brought to Izmir.
"How many hours did it (use to) take to arrive from Istanbul to Izmir? 7.5 hours. Now, it's 3 hours and 15 minutes," Erdoğan said. "We are the ones who opened these roads... What was our first job? We said, 'This airport does not suit Izmir.' Who built the Menderes Airport in Izmir? Mr. Kemal, where were you? We did it. Because it suited Izmir."
"There were problems with the stadiums in Izmir. Did we build the stadiums? Did we mobilize the youth with these stadiums? We did everything, we still do, we will do it," Erdoğan stated. "We did what it takes, Mr. Kemal. You couldn't save Izmir from garbage, mud, and pits."
Erdoğan noted that multipurpose amphibious assault ship TCG Anadolu – Türkiye's long-anticipated largest warship and first aircraft carrier and the world’s first vessel with an air wing mainly consisting of unmanned aircraft – would be in Izmir for a week on the last leg of its tour of Türkiye.
"TCG Anadolu is coming to Alsancak Port... Don't forget to take a tour, you can't always get this opportunity. We reserved the last week here. We said, 'Let's do the final here.'"
