‘Türkiye will change,’ says main opposition Istanbul mayor

As debates over early elections in Türkiye, particularly surrounding pensions and minimum wage, gain momentum, the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) continues to amplify these discussions.

On Monday, the CHP’s Istanbul Provincial Directorate held a Statutory Congress Workshop, gathering civil society organizations focused on democracy, human rights, and gender equality.

Key themes

The workshop took place at the Halic Congress Center and centered around five key themes: representation, anti-corruption, accountability and ethics, democratic decision-making methods, organizational models, and candidate selection processes.

Discussions on each topic were guided by moderators, and the resulting insights will be compiled into a report for the Statutory Congress, which is set to commence on Sept. 4 in Sivas and will continue in Ankara.

Istanbul Metropolitan Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and CHP Istanbul Provincial Chair Ozgur Celik delivered the opening remarks. Mayor Imamoglu underscored the workshop’s importance, emphasizing the need for change within the party and its impact on Türkiye.

He remarked, “The Republican People’s Party will change, and Türkiye will change with it. There is no other possible outcome of this journey.”

“This journey can have no other outcome. We are aware that the world has been experiencing a period of crisis, which has been described as a ‘multiple crisis’ affecting various sectors, including the political arena. The effects of this multiple crisis have been felt more intensely in our country,” he added.