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Sparking criticisms and protests of students, academics and alumni with his appointment as the rector of Boğaziçi University by President and Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on January 2, Prof. Melih Bulu has made a statement on Twitter in response to the criticisms of Republican People's Party (CHP) Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.
In his Parliamentary group meeting yesterday (June 8), the main opposition leader Kılıçdaroğlu criticized Bulu and called on him to resign.
Bulu has responded in the following words:
"Today, Mr. Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu argued that I cannot even teach at Boğaziçi and end the classes of some academics. Putting aside his tone, I would like to recall a few things as to the essence of the matter:
"You probably don't know that I actually taught classes at the Department of Management of Boğaziçi between the years of 2002 and 2010. As for the decisions foreseeing that some of the academics who taught classes in previous semesters will not be teaching in the new semester, they were not taken by me, but by the objective criteria of the academic decision-makers.
"I believe that it will be more sound if you make your statements by consulting with reliable sources of information, as is done by every responsible politician, rather than relying on unfounded news."
'You cannot even teach there'
Addressing his party at the weekly group meeting earlier in the day, CHP Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu talked about Bulu, calling on him to resign:
"We say that when universities produce science, Turkey will start producing products with high added value. As you know, they have appointed a trustee-rector to Boğaziçi. You, let alone being a rector, cannot even be a lecturer at Boğaziçi. If you are honorable, resign.
"Why don't you resign? He lays off academics, based on what mentality? Can the rector of a university be an enemy of science? Rector is an enemy of science and scientists." (KÖ/SD)
