CHP Bursa Provincial Directorate came together for the citizens who lost their lives in the earthquake at 6 in the morning in the City Square on the anniversary of February 04.17.
Speaking at the ceremony, which started with a two-minute silence in memory of the citizens who lost their lives in the earthquake, CHP Bursa Provincial Chairman Nihat Yeşiltaş stated the following:
“Countless of our citizens lost their spouses, children, mothers, fathers, siblings and loved ones in the earthquake. These earthquakes caused great destruction in 11 provinces. According to the official figures, 53 thousand of our citizens lost their lives, and according to Murat Kurum's statement, 130 thousand of our citizens lost their lives. So they hid the real number from us. Thousands of our citizens; He was left homeless and stateless. Even the bodies of many of our citizens could not be found, and countless children disappeared. "The earthquakes, which left many of our citizens homeless and separated them from the warmth of their homes and loved ones, caused us indescribable pain."
“CONSTRUCTION AMNESTY HAS BEEN TURNED INTO AN ELECTION INVESTMENT”
Yeşiltaş stated that search and rescue teams were not dispatched to earthquake zones in time due to the lack of coordination caused by the one-man regime, and that appreciative citizens rushed to help the region and said, “They did not let our beloved soldier out of the barracks for 3 days. Our citizens and non-governmental organizations tried to compensate for the inadequacy of those who govern the country. No matter how much time passes, this is a pain we experience that will never go away. We all know that it is not possible to bring back our lost lives. "However, this disaster painfully reminded us once again that we need to create cities that are resistant to earthquakes and natural disasters," he said.
In his speech, Yeşiltaş stated that if it were not for the zoning amnesty made by Murat Kurum, the candidate for Mayor of Istanbul, during his ministry and if the buildings were built in accordance with the rules, such great pain would not have occurred and said, "The zoning amnesty, which they tried to soften by using an innocent name like the Zoning Peace, is the AK Party's choice in every election." It became one of the most important pre-election investments. Even though a year has passed since the earthquake, the problems in the regions where the disaster occurred have not been resolved. After the earthquake, the wounds are still not healed. We are in the winter months. Our citizens living in tents and containers are in a difficult situation. We continue to receive sad news about fires occurring in tents and containers. The problems of shelter, water, food and education in the region have not been solved. The housing problem of earthquake victims is growing day by day. "The wounds continue to bleed," he said.
“THE EARTHQUAKE FACT IS BEING USED AS A SUBJECT OF BLACKMAIL”
In his statement, Yeşiltaş also touched upon President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's words, "If the central government and the local government do not join hands and are not in solidarity, nothing will happen to that city," and said, "The fact of the earthquake continues to be used as a blackmail, intimidation and bargaining issue against our citizens for the upcoming local elections." It does. Our citizens will never bow down to the AK Party and Erdoğan's blackmail, which turned a blind eye to the earthquake zone, and will create ways to look to the future with hope, in solidarity and cooperation. "All our members of the Republican People's Party and our municipalities will always continue to be a part of this great solidarity and strive to heal the wounds," he said.
Emphasizing that the recommendations of scientists should be taken into consideration immediately in order to prevent the same pain from happening again, and that earthquake-resistant housing should be built instead of urban transformation being a profit-making transformation, Yeşiltaş said, “We must all do our part to prevent these indescribable pains from happening again, neither in our Bursa nor in other cities. I commemorate our citizens who lost their lives in the earthquake on this longest night with respect and mercy, and offer my condolences to their families, relatives and loved ones. He concluded his words by saying, "I would like to thank all the citizens of this beautiful country who strive to heal the wounds in unity and solidarity, who struggle and who try to alleviate the pain to some extent with their work."
“WE HAVE TO CREATE RESILIENT CITIES”
Speaking after the speech of Provincial Mayor Nihat Yeşiltaş, Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Candidate Mustafa Bozbey stated that he worked for 22 days in Hatay's Defne district after the earthquake and said, “I saw this there, the personnel who were supposed to serve people had come together with their own pain. In fact, we have to create a resilient city in earthquake-related studies. Secondly, it is not only about preparing for an earthquake, but also about what to do after an earthquake. The information we have obtained from people who have experienced it shows that; They shared that they needed a toilet on the first day, water on the second day, and food on the third day. As city managers and mayors, we have to be prepared for these. "It is our responsibility to announce meeting areas to everyone and create these needs," he said.
DRAW ATTENTION TO BURSA
Pointing out that Bursa is the first earthquake region, Bozbey said, “We have to live with the earthquake. It is the city's administrators who will prepare this for those living here. We know that personnel who need to work in the earthquake zone cannot come to municipalities. Management weaknesses have occurred. The reason for this is because they are not prepared. With the reality of earthquakes, we must prepare without fear of earthquakes. We have to know what to do during an earthquake, fulfill them, and then leave that area and support people. Education is required for this. Let's look at the Nilüfer example. 'Disaster Volunteers' were established in all neighborhoods. Disaster containers were placed. These should be in all neighborhoods. There must be piercing and cutting tools in the containers. Volunteers who will use them will ensure intervention until competent people arrive. "It is incredible that even one life was saved there," he said.
“WE DID NOT LEARN A LESSON FROM 1999”
“For resilient cities, we need to plan the entire city. "The view I saw in Hatay, I witnessed how single-storey buildings on the fault collapsed," Bozbey continued, adding, "We know that there are buildings on the fault in Bursa. It is essential for these places to be transformed safely. We need to use our time well. Although 1 year has passed since the suffering, we see with regret that there are no precautionary activities in our city. Not just 1 year ago. We experienced this pain at our doorstep in 1999, but we did not learn from it. The upcoming period is extremely important for all of us. We will share these on the field. We are people who believe in science. If we had done what was scientifically predicted, many of our people would be living among us right now. I wish God's mercy to all those who passed away. "May they rest in peace," he said.
