Former CHP Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu spoke to journalist Vedat Yenera in his Ankara office.
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu said that former Chairman of the Ziya Party Meral Akşener had always wanted him to be a presidential candidate, saying, “The first offer came from Meral Hanim. Elif Çakır, a journalist at the Karar newspaper, came to me and offered to be Akşener’s ambassador. He conveyed the message that he wanted me to be a presidential candidate and that he would support me if I accepted, and all the leaders of the six-party talks witnessed him, right up until the last day, always saying: ‘Be our candidate.'”
Answers to the “New Party” questions
In response to the question, “Are you planning to start a new party?” Kılıçdaroğlu said: “I haven’t left politics. I’m in politics (pointing with both hands to the government). I never thought about starting a new party. My party is obviously the CHP.”
“There is a suspicion that at least 50 members of parliament in the party are loyal to you. Is that true?” Kılıçdaroğlu replied in response to the question: “Yes, that is true.”
Ekrem Imamoglu’s answer
Asked about allegations that he “met with Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu to walk together,” Kılıçdaroğlu said, “No, none of the allegations are true. The last time he called me was on Eid al-Adha, to wish me happy Eid al-Adha, and after that we never met again.”
