* Photo: Mustafa Kamacı - Ankara/AA
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President and ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan addressed the public following the cabinet meeting in the capital city of Ankara yesterday (September 7).
Amid a recent surge in the number of daily novel coronavirus (COVID-19) cases and deaths, Erdoğan has announced new measures to fight the pandemic. As reported by the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA), speaking after four-hour cabinet meeting, Erdoğan has warned citizens that "in all provinces, no standing passengers will be allowed in public transportation."
Cafes and restaurants will also be subject to stricter inspections, he has added. "The fines imposed on the ones who do not obey the rules, especially the mask use, will definitely be collected," he has said.
Regarding the new school year, Erdoğan has stated, "We will continue education with a system where we will do both face-to-face and remote education, taking into account the conditions of the epidemic."
According to President Erdoğan, Turkey will open schools to education, starting with pre-school and first grade primary school students, according to the preference of individual families.
In his latest statement about the issue, Minister of Education Ziya Selçuk said that the new school year would begin on August 31 with distance education, which would be followed by a gradual transition to face to face education as of September 21 with fewer number of students in class.
'Number of daily cases should drop below 100'
Sharing the latest daily coronavirus table yesterday, the Ministry of Health has announced that 57 people have died of the virus and 1,703 new cases have been reported across Turkey in the last 24 hours.
Against this backdrop, Erdoğan has warned that "before Turkey feels the burden of seasonal diseases, the number of its daily cases should drop below 100 and the number of deceased to zero, if possible."
"As long as we do not stay away from crowded events or do not obey the rules, neither the hospitals we open nor penal sanctions can protect us from the virus," President Erdoğan has said further.
CLICK - 'Highest number of daily COVID-19 cases is reported in Ankara,' says Health Minister
'We are faced with obstacles'
In his speech, Erdoğan has also touched upon a series of current issues ranging from the economy to the tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Indicating that Turkey's economy has shrunk in the second quarter as expected, Erdoğan has said, "It is still a fact that we are still in a better situation than several states, including developed countries."
He has also argued that "all data show that Turkey will see a strong recovery in the third quarter" and added: "The more politically, economically and militarily strong Turkey gets, the more obstacles it is faced with."
Referring to the Eastern Mediterranean, he has said, "When we spoiled the games of those who wanted to confine a country with 780 thousand square kilometers of land in the Eastern Mediterranean to its shores through 10 square kilometers of islands, we found no one on our side."
"I say this clearly: I hope that those who stand up against Turkey at the expense of their own citizens' security and welfare will not pay a heavy price for this when the time comes," Erdoğan has warned.
'Turkey now has a say in its region'
Concluding his remarks, he has briefly said:
"We undertake projects in a wide range of hi-tech fields such as automotive and defense industries which can make Turkey one of the top few countries of the world. We are also in preparations to introduce new reforms related to human rights, judiciary and commercial regulations that would facilitate the lives of our citizens from every walk of life.
"With its current level of self-confidence that it has gained as a result of these efforts, Turkey has now become a country that has a say in its region and the world." (EKN/SD)
