'Democracy won, Western media lost': Erdogan makes victory speech
4 Min Read
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses his supporters after winning the Turkish presidential election and underlines that democracy won in Turkey.
-
Turkish President and People's Alliance's presidential candidate Recep Tayyip Erdogan, center, gestures to supporters at the presidential palace, in Ankara, Turkey, May 28, 2023 (AP)
The Turkish presidential election went smoothly without any problems, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Sunday during his victory speech, adding that the people gave him the responsibility of managing the country for another five years.
Erdogan also thanked the Turkish people from all walks of life, regardless of their allegiance to him or other parties, as well as all those who contributed to the success of the electoral process, especially the Turkish security forces.
"We won the Parliament in the first round, and in the second round, we took the presidency. Turkey and democracy both won," the Turkish leader underlined. "No one lost in Turkey."
The Republican People's Party gave seats to certain parties despite the latter not having even 1% of the vote.
Western media lost
All the obstacles that once stood in Turkey's face are a thing of the past now, Erdogan added, telling his supporters that Turkey was before a "new and strong" century, referring to the 100-year-anniversary of the founding of the Turkish republic.
The Justice and Development Party (AKP) gave strength to Turkey throughout the past because of the Turkish people," Erdogan said, stressing that "democracy reigns victorious, and Western media, as well as those who sided with Western institutions, lost."
"Turkey knows about the Western media and organizations' plans: they want to obstruct the country's progress. The Turkish people will not accept this," he added.
The government will be moving in the direction of developing the country's economy and dealing with inflation as well as the repercussions of the earthquake, the Turkish leader revealed. "We are the only ones capable of dealing with the country's problems, not the resistance that has nothing to show but words."
Turkey working on return of refugees
Upon paying off its debts, the Turkish government severed its ties with the International Monetary Fund, the Turkish president said.
"The opposition wanted to bring in debts from abroad, and if that were to happen, it will open the country up to foreign interventions. This is unacceptable," Erdogan added.
The government previously worked on and will continue working on extracting Turkish oil and gas, he stressed, pledging to work on developing the country's tech sector and will increase the number of hospitals and investments in the energy sector.
"We are working on returning the refugees. We have repatriated a million refugees as of late.
Speaking on Turkey's ties with Russia, Erdogan promised to work on developing economic ties with Russia while also bolstering the tourism and service sector.
The Supreme Election Council chief said on Sunday that Erdogan won the presidential election with 52.14% of the vote.
"After processing 99.43% of the ballots from polling stations in Turkey and in foreign missions and border crossings, Erdogan received 52.14% of the vote, while [Kemal] Kilicdaroglu received 47.86%," Ahmet Yener told a press conference.
In the wake of learning of his election victory, Erdogan, alongside his supporters, celebrated the victory at his home in Istanbul before the official election results not being declared yet.
Speaking from the porch of his home in Istanbul, the Turkish President hailed his supporters and the Turkish people.
Saying: "Bye, bye, bye, Kemal," referring to his opponent, opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, Erdogan declared his victory before thousands of his supporters in Istanbul as he prepared to lead the country for an additional five years while the country's major cities were celebrating the major victory.
