* Photo: Aytaç Ünal - Ankara / AA
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İYİ Party Chair Meral Akşener spoke at the weekly Parliamentary group meeting of her party in the capital city of Ankara today (April 14). Akşener criticized the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government's management of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic amid a recent increase in the numbers of cases and deaths across Turkey.
"Since the outbreak of the pandemic, we have warned the government over and over again," said Akşener, underlining that none of these warnings has been taken into account, which has brought Turkey to the current situation. "In addition to the warnings, we have talked about what needs to be done day by day," Akşener noted and listed her party's recommendations:
"We said, 'Lend an ear to scientists, don't let our nation get hurt any more. Don't be late for imposing a three-week total lockdown, this is not going to end well. Take vaccine hesitancy seriously and bring the vaccines as soon as possible, there is no way out other than this.
"Prioritize our low-income citizens and teachers in vaccination. Our medical army making ceaseless efforts has got tired; ease their burden, give them moral support. Reintroduce flexible work urgently, don't let our millions of citizens use public transport on the same hour'."
Noting that they also offered economic support packages and explained how they could be funded, Akşener said, "It went in their one ear and out the other. While we were expecting them to take it seriously, they held jam-packed congresses and invited the virus, so to speak."
'We do not deserve this picture'
Criticizing the 'jam-packed' AKP congresses further, Akşener said:
"And the result? Turkey has become the country with the highest number of cases. We do not deserve this picture. But those who do not listen to the warnings of our physicians and medical army, who have been working ceaselessly, and those who have strayed from the path of reason and science have unfortunately abandoned Turkey to this terrible picture."
"While the countries that took the outbreak seriously and tried to do their share are now normalizing one by one, Turkey is going through its worst period," Akşener noted, underlining that "this situation is a result of gross imprudence, gross unseriousness and gross incompetence. This picture is the work of the government, not that of our nation."
'Why don't you let scientists decide?'
Reminding her audience that she had addressed the members of the Health Ministry's Coronavirus Scientific Advisory Board, asking them, 'Either tell the truth or resign, if they silence you', Akşener said: "The Science Board convened again on Monday. In the light of science, they told the Health Minister what needs to be done. What happened after that?
"The solution plan of the Science Board was treated as a recommendation. At a time when we did not have even a single hour to lose, 24 more hours passed for nothing. Why? Because Erdoğan was going to examine it and give a decision... With what information and knowledge... It is uncertain. Are you a doctor? Are you an infectious diseases specialist? Why do you give the decision about such an issue that requires expertise?
"Why don't you let scientists make the decision? What kind of an ambition is that? What kind of arrogance? What kind of irresponsibility? No such unseriousness can be the case. The state cannot be ruled like this."
'Didn't you hear what TTB said?'
Raising concerns that countries are suspending flights with Turkey in the context of tourism and Turkey's decision to send 150 thousand vaccines to Libya, Meral Aşener briefly said the following:
"Okay, we understand that you pretend to not hear us. But the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) came up and said, 'We are at the third and highest peak.' Didn't you hear it, either? The İstanbul Medical Chamber said, 'Hospitals are full, patients are waiting for their turn.' Didn't you hear it, either? The Ankara Medical Chamber called out, 'We have patients waiting on a stretcher for 12 hours.' Didn't you hear it either?
"You didn't hear it, you were not curious about it, you didn't even care about it. Because while the nation was struggling for its life, you were after different calculations, you were after different plans."
'You cannot put the blame on people'
Concluding her remarks, İYİ Party Chair Akşener also talked about Health Minister Fahrettin Koca, who said, "All of us, 84 million people, are responsible for bringing the outbreak to this point":
"I put aside the ones who do not abide by the rules and do not take measures. But, no. Our nation is not the one responsible for this picture. The one responsible for this picture is you, who cannot manage the pandemic, cannot bring the vaccines and abandon the nation to poverty.
"You cannot put the blame on the nation and run, Mr. Erdoğan! You cannot run and hide when faced with hardships. You will take responsibility for the peaking case numbers. You will take responsibility for the vaccines that are not delivered. You will take responsibility for the jam-packed congresses. There is no escape from this." (AS/SD)
