Ahmet Özer, who was elected as mayor of Istanbul's Esenyurt district in the March 31 local elections with the “Urban Consensus”, was arrested after being detained on October 30. Istanbul Deputy Governor Can Aksoy was appointed as trustee to replace Özer. 

 

Esenyurt Municipality is the largest district in Turkey. It is also the municipality with the largest budget in the city after the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB), and a center with a large Kurdish and asylum-seeking migrant population. Residents of the district reacted to Özer's arrest and the appointment of a trustee in his place. 

 

'I AM FROM AMASYA AND I STAND BEHIND ÖZER'

 

Ali Emirel stated that the people of Esenyurt showed their reaction at the rally against the trusteeship and said: “While the country is in this state, while children are being killed in hospitals, they are doing their best to change the agenda. We stand by Ahmet Özer until the end. I am from Amasya. I strongly condemn the treatment we were subjected to by the police. I went to the rally to seek my own will and the police can not spare us.”

 

CRITICISM AGAINST CHP

 

Yakup Manduz, reacting to the fact that the government does whatever it wants and is silent about it. “Those in charge remain silent. I especially blame the CHP here. The CHP should take a hand in this matter. It should not remain silent. It must resist against the trustees. If 50 percent belongs to him, 50 percent belongs to the CHP. Why is the CHP silent on this issue? Whoever you ask in the Esenyurt square is full. The people in charge take who they want, torture who they want, imprison who they want and treat who they want. This time the people become the guilty ones. If the people are given leadership, this people can do a lot. But there is no leader. Van is an example. They tried very hard in Van, but they couldn't take it. Because the people of Van showed a lot of resistance. They were resilient and took back their municipality” he said. 

 

İbrahim Özgökçe said that they stood by Özer and that the injustice done to him was done to all the people of Esenyurt. Özgökçe stated that brotherly peoples will always stand by Özer “Our prayers will always be with him. We choose someone and they immediately attack,” he said. 

 

Ekrem Özer said that the trusteeship was a practice against democracy and an unethical policy. Özer stated that the appointment of the trustee and the arrest of Özer was done with a perception operation.

 

'WE DO NOT ACCEPT'

 

Akif Yılmaz stated that the trusteeship is unfair, unlawful and unjust and said: “As Esenyurt residents, we do not accept this unlawfulness against Özer. They appointed a trustee because he is Kurdish. As peoples, we are against this lawlessness. He was a popular mayor. He was always at arm's length and side by side with the young, the old and everyone. We are looking forward to him.”

 

A resident who did not want to give his name expressed his reaction as follows: “He was going to serve even more. They arrested him and put him in jail. He has no crime and no fault. In this country, you are either a terrorist or a FETÖ member. They punish everyone.”