Halil İbrahim Yılmaz: 'We reject the mindset that serves itself, not the city'

Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mansur Yavaş and City Council President Halil İbrahim Yılmaz came together with the representatives of many trade unions, federations and non-governmental organisations, including DİSK Emekliler-Sen and Chamber of Veterinary Doctors, at the iftar programme organised by Ankara City Council (AKK).

Intense participation was ensured
CHP Deputy Chairwoman Gamze Taşcıer, former State Minister Zeki Sezer, Mayor of Gölbaşı Yakup Odabaşı, Mayor of Beypazarı Özer Kasap and representatives of various NGOs attended the programme held in Ankara City Council building. Speeches were made before the iftar dinner.

Yavaş: ‘We have a management approach that embraces everyone’
In his speech, Mayor of the Union of Chambers and Communities of Ankara Mansur Yavaş drew attention to the structure of Ankara that brings together people from all walks of life and emphasised the responsibility of being a capital city. Yavaş said, ‘We are working with a management approach that embraces everyone and does not discriminate anyone. We need the opinion of everyone who has a say in Ankara. Therefore, structures such as the City Council are very valuable for us. Yavaş also drew attention to the historical importance of the place used as iftar area and said, ‘This is an area where Mustafa Kemal Atatürk supervised the construction. We are keeping the memory of the founding of the Republic alive'.

Yilmaz ‘Civil society is not a seat but a dedication’
City Council President Halil İbrahim Yılmaz emphasised the historical and cultural depth of Ankara in his speech. Stating that Ankara is the capital not only of Anatolia but also of all oppressed nations, Yılmaz said: ‘In this city, differences have become a mortar for each other. We will continue to come together not in differences but in commonalities.

Stating that NGOs are the capillaries of the society, Yılmaz said, ‘Non-governmental organisations are not an office, but a dedication. If these structures representing the heart of the city become dysfunctional, there will be a serious mental eclipse in the society. We will be the guardians of goodness, not the office, not the crisis. We will continue on our way with a love that works for the city, not for oneself.

The programme ended with a Sufi music concert and iftar dinner.

Source: CUMHA - REPUBLIC NEWS AGENCY