* Photograph: Mustafa Aktaş - İstanbul/AA
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Ruling Justice and Development Party's (AKP) Metropolitan Mayor candidate for İstanbul and current Parliamentary Speaker Binali Yıldırım has announced that he will resign from his office.
Stating that he will step down as Parliamentary Speaker on February 18, when his application for the Metropolitan Mayorship of İstanbul is submitted and he becomes an official candidate, Binali Yıldırım has said,
"I have not been officially a candidate yet. My party has announced that it will nominate me as a candidate. It is very disturbing that there are discussions going on an action that has not yet been taken."
Here are some of the highlights from the interview of Binali Yıldırım to Buket Aydın from CNN Türk:
HDP's decision of nominating no candidates for 3 cities
* [That People's Democratic Party (HDP) will not nominate candidates in 3 provinces] does not make any difference to us. They can nominate candidates or not... İstanbul is the summary of whole Turkey. In İstanbul, there are citizens coming from all parts of the country. Therefore, we are seeking the votes of all İstanbulites.
* The message given by the HDP is clear. It means 'We will support the Nation Alliance [of main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and İYİ Party]'. No one should take the votes of the Kurds for granted.
Traffic problem of İstanbul
* Let's be honest. No one can say, 'İstanbul will not have any traffic problem.' What I promise is mobility. In other words, people will not live out their lives being stuck in traffic, in constant stops and gos. People will not spend an hour waiting in traffic. Traffic will flow, even if slowly, be that in 20-30 km/h.
Before leaving the Speaker's Office
* A commission has been established in the Parliament with the aim of doing research on the causes of such diseases as MS (Multiple Sclerosis) and ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), treating their patients and making life easier for them. It is now waiting to be signed. My first promise is this...
* And my second promise... It is about the horses pulling phaetons (coaches) in the Princes' Islands. A tragedy took place there. We are witnessing inhuman treatment of horses there. I also want that a bill of law foreseeing the prevention of violence against animals be submitted to the Parliament before I leave the office. (EKN/SD)
