An Istanbul Court has issued provisional imprisonment for the Metropolitan Mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, deepening the political crisis that the country is experiencing since the detention last Wednesday of this popular Social Democratic politician, one of the main leaders of the opposition to the government of President Recep Tayip Erdogan. His formation, the Republican Party of the People (CHP), has denounced this decision – qualified as “shame for the judicial system” by the mayor of Ankara, Mansur Yavas – and has called a massive participation in the symbolic primary elections that celebrates this Sunday to proclaim the candidacy of Imamoglu to the presidential elections, planned for 2028. streets of the main Turkish cities.
After four days in police custody, Imamoglu was taken on Saturday afternoon to the Palace of Justice of çaglayan, where, throughout the night, about thirty prosecutors made a statement to the mayor and another 90 accused for two separate cases about corruption and cooperation with terrorist organization. Already entered today, a judge on duty charged Imamoglu and decreed preventive detention for the accusation of corruption – not because of terrorism -, claiming the possibility of escaping or destroying evidence.
The Interior Ministry announced in turn that, following the imputation, it dismisses Imamogl “temporarily” of its position as Metropolitan Mayor, as well as two other mayors of two districts of Istanbul (Beylikdüzü and Sisli). In the case of the SISLI City Council, he appoints an auditor, as he has done with, but not in the cases of the Metropolitan City Council of Istanbul and in the district of Beylikdüzü, where he will allow the municipal assembly to be the one who chooses the substitutes. In Istanbul, social democrats have the majority.
After knowing the judicial decision, the Imamoglu team has published several messages in its account of the social network X in which the opposition leader appeals to citizens to continue the protests and support today the primary of his party. “Dear nation, do not sad, do not discourage, do not miss hope. Together we will defeat this coup d’etat, this black spot on our democracy. I remain firm, I will never give up. Everything will go well!” Says the councilor in a first message. In other later, he argues that what happened today “is not a judicial process, but an extrajudicial execution” and a “betrayal”, and urges the population to “fight for their rights” and manifest “in a responsibility.”
The accusation of corruption created to fissure municipal funds through inflated invoices and screen companies through advertising contracts. The terrorism states that Imamoglu reached agreements with the Kurdish (legal) nationalist movement to include members linked to the PK armed group in municipal institutions (with which the government itself currently negotiates that depones weapons). The City Council responds that this is impossible, since both municipal employees and candidates for elections must receive an authorization from the State and present their background.
Imamoglu’s lawyers have denounced that both cases are built on the basis of rumors and confessions of secret witnesses, and the opposition has defined them as an attempt by the government to get rid of a political rival, since some surveys show that Imamogu rivals popularity with Erdogan. In fact, since his arrival in the mayor of Istanbul in 2019, he has been opened fifty judicial investigations, most still in progress.
Imamoglu has not hidden its intention to appear at the next elections. So the center -left formation convened primary a month ago for this Sunday, in order to settle what support has an Imamogl between the million and a half members of the party. The mayor of Ankara also valued his candidacy for presidential, although he did not want to participate in the primary. Imamoglu is, thus, the only applicant today, so his victory in those primaries is assured.
However, after what happened this week, the vote has become more than a fight within the party: it has taken the form of opposition to the government, which will measure support for the mayor of Istanbul not only within the CHP but in the whole of Turkish society. And it is that the party has also decided to place “polls of solidarity” so that all those who are not members of the party can deposit their vote today.
Millions of people have come to the more than 5,000 polls established by the CHP throughout the country. The influx has been such that in some voting points the ballots have been exhausted, according to the NTV television network, and the match has decided to expand the voting schedule in two hours. It can be participated until 19.00 (17.00 in peninsular Spain).
