The Presidency's Head of Communications, Fahrettin Altun, emphasised in his speech at the "CİMER Mobile Application Launch Event," held at the Directorate of Communications, that CİMER, the world's largest public communication platform, was being constantly updated in light of the latest technologies.
Head of Communications Altun pointed out that the Presidency's Communication Centre (CİMER) served as the most effective communication bridge between the nation and the state, with the motto "through digital connection to heartfelt ties," saying, "The world's largest public communication platform, CİMER, which encompasses all our institutions and organisations under the coordination of our Directorate, is constantly updated in light of the latest technologies, thereby broadening its scope and making it accessible to our nation."
Head of Communications Altun noted that CİMER has developed into a public policy resource that draws on the nation as its basis, a key component of participatory democracy, a fundamental information-gathering tool, a successful strategy for pursuing legal rights, and a platform where the public conscience is mobilised to oppose unlawful entities and events.
Stating that the Directorate has been primarily committed to enhancing the nation-state bond since the very day of its establishment, Head of Communications Altun noted that they operated with the conviction that the communication between the state and the nation is at the core of this mission, adding:
"We believe that the key element in enhancing the quality of nation-state relations is upholding the communication bridge between the nation and the state. We perceive CİMER as an embodiment of our long-standing state tradition and a symbol of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's unity with his nation. In his book "The Book of Government or Rules for Kings," Nizam Al-Mulk says, 'The Almighty bestows blessings unto the statesman for his unity with his people and the abundance of his justice.' The political career of our President has been elevated by the guiding principle that 'We have not come to be the masters but to be the servants of our nation,' which is rooted in our state tradition.
"The protection of consumers is one of the social benefits of CİMER"
Emphasising that the origins of CİMER could be traced back to the White Desk, which President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan established during his tenure as Mayor of İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality, Head of Communications Altun noted that Türkiye entered a new era when President Erdoğan became Prime Minister in 2003 and that the Prime Ministry Communication Centre (BİMER) was established, which was subsequently transferred to the Presidency as part of the presidential government system and organised under the umbrella of CİMER in 2018.
Head of Communications Altun stated that the primary objective of CİMER was to serve the public interest and provide social benefits, noting, "In this regard, one of the social benefits of CİMER is its service to consumer protection. Our citizens' CİMER applications contribute to the detection of disruptions and abuses in the market, which serves the rights of consumers."
Stating that thanks to the applications made by citizens, it is possible to quickly identify violations of rights and ensure equality of opportunity, Head of Communications Altun also noted the significance of CİMER as a mechanism that responds to the calls of the public during times of crisis and disaster.
Remarking that the clearest example of this was seen in the earthquakes on February 6, 2023, with the epicentre in Kahramanmaraş, Head of Communications Altun said, "We integrated the 'Earthquake Emergency' application type into our system to produce faster solutions to the demands of our citizens in the region. The results of the applications were carefully monitored by contacting our citizens through the received applications to ensure they were fulfilled."
Indicating that they analyse and report on social patterns, areas of focus, risks and opportunities through CİMER and share the outputs they obtain with the directors of ministries, directorates, relevant institutions and organisations, Head of Communications Altun said, "CİMER is currently the world's largest public communication platform, and we are proud of that. We are at the service of our nation 24/7, with nearly 90 thousand colleagues in 81 provinces. We received 4 million 590 thousand applications in 2024. In the first quarter of this year, the number of applications is already approaching one million. Since 2018, the number of applications has surpassed 35 million. In addition to this increase in demand, the use of smartphones in applications has risen from 40 per cent to 70 per cent over the last five years."
Head of Communications Altun stated that the CİMER Mobile application was created as a result of this development, remarking that the technology behind CİMER Mobile is a user-friendly interface that expedites and facilitates the application and follow-up processes.
Indicating that with the CİMER Mobile application, citizens would be able to submit their requests, complaints, opinions and suggestions quickly and easily from their smartphones or tablets, Head of Communications Altun said, "In this way, we aim to enable our citizens to easily access all institutions and organisations of our state, to increase participatory governance and to further strengthen the nation-state communication. We are currently working as quickly as possible in cooperation with TÜBİTAK Informatics and Information Security Research Centre (BİLGEM) to integrate artificial intelligence into the CİMER Mobile application."
"We are working tirelessly to enable the voice of our nation to be heard from everywhere"
Remarking that CİMER attracted great interest with its governance values, such as citizen orientation, openness, transparency, and accountability, Head of Communications Altun said, "If the public sphere is a platform where ideas, discourses, and actions put forward for the common good of society are produced and developed, then CİMER does exactly that." This public space enables a medium of freedom for discussion for every citizen, regardless of their social status, language, religion, or culture. As the Directorate of Communications, we prioritise such public spaces where everyone has a fair say, and we continue to work tirelessly to enable the voice of our nation to be heard from everywhere with our various applications, especially CİMER."
Head of Communications Altun stated that CİMER is one of the manifestations of Türkiye's Communication Model and added, "Praise be to Allah, CİMER is taken as a precedent around the world and appreciated both on a national and international scale. Of course, the biggest reward for us is that CİMER is presented as a solution to the problems discussed in friendly gatherings. The biggest reward of all is that CİMER becomes the first medium that comes to mind for sharing ideas on the issues of the country. In summary, the biggest reward for us is that CİMER is appreciated by our nation."
Head of Communications Altun said that CİMER has received many awards, particularly the "World Summit on the Information Society Forum Prize", the "Golden World Awards for Excellence" of the International Public Relations Association, the "Golden Compass Public Relations Award" of the Turkish Public Relations Association and the "Special Jury Award" of Türkiye Barrier-Free Informatics Platform.
Stating that they continue their publications on CİMER in order to crown these achievements and ensure the effective use of the system, Head of Communication Altun remarked that the "CİMER in 50 Questions" book addresses the potential questions of citizens and the publication series titled "Resolved through CİMER" reveals concrete solutions to the problems of the public.
Head of Communications Altun conveyed that all the efforts they have implemented and the successes they have achieved within the scope of CİMER point to the unshakeable place of the nation-state relationship in civilisation, and added:
"The source of the independent and honourable stance we display in the global arena today is that our President walks hand in hand with our nation. As a result of the developments we have accomplished in the last 23 years in every field, we stand strong in this fragile and uncertain environment of the world. In an era where the equations we have known so far in the global system are being disrupted, and we are faced with new developments in our region and in the world, our country stands out with its role as a playmaker and a source of stability. Türkiye determines its goals and policies strategically in the whole framework of parameters and possibilities, not on a daily basis.
Türkiye is leading peace and security initiatives not only for our region and country but also for the world in this fragile and uncertain environment. I would like to particularly underline that today, we are witnessing a time in which no game plan can be played in the international arena without Türkiye in it. As a matter of fact, terminating the existence of terrorist organisations utilised as apparatus by global powers in our country and region has become increasingly crucial. While our country is on the brink of a full reconciliation in line with the "Terrorism-free Türkiye" ideal, we can see that some fault lines targeting our social unity are being exacerbated by disinformation operations. Neither we nor our country will tolerate such attempts. Just as in the words of our President, 'As a nation, we cannot tolerate a breach in our home front.'
"Communication is able with the truth"
Head of Communications Altun stated that using mechanisms at their disposal, including the Centre for Combating Disinformation, they have exposed the false content circulated by dark circles and dirty plots and have brought these to the attention of the nation and the world, adding, "In fact, we believe that communication is able with the truth. And truth is compelled to the strong voice we shall raise hand in hand with our nation, our institutions and organisations."
Head of Communications Altun emphasised that it is their historical and humanitarian responsibility to raise this voice not only to consolidate Türkiye's position but also in the face of injustices, inequities, oppression and massacres in the region and the world and continued:
"We owe it to the oppressed. Praise be to Allah; this is indeed what we do. Under the leadership of our President and along with our institutions and nation, we are putting up a great fight in the international arena for our Palestinian brothers and sisters, who are victims of severe persecution for all the world to see. By violating the ceasefire yet again, genocidal Israel showed the entire world that it is committed to ethnic cleansing activities and genocide, that it does not recognise international law and that it only feeds on blood and cruelty. The network of murderers led by Netanyahu slaughtered and martyred hundreds of innocent Palestinians in one day.
Western media's biased and inaccurate portrayals and the continued financial support of the Western countries to Israel have unfortunately shown signs that this poison suffocating humanity is all-pervasive. I would like to clearly and unequivocally reiterate that we condemn in the strongest terms the ongoing genocide and recent attacks by Israel against the Palestinians. As Türkiye, we will continue to stand by our brave Palestinian brothers and sisters and make their voices heard strongly on every platform, particularly in the media. We will continue our fight until Palestine is free and a two-state solution is realised."
"We will serve as a communication bridge between the state and the nation in building the Century of Türkiye"
At the end of his speech, Head of Communications Altun thanked the stakeholder organisations and stated, "I would like to express once more that we will serve as a communication bridge between the state and the nation in building the Century of Türkiye or, more accurately, that we will continue to build a bridge of hearts with determination. I hope the CİMER Mobile application will be auspicious to our nation and our state."
Chief Public Ombudsman Mehmet Akarca delivered a speech at the programme, which was also attended by Serdar Karagöz, the Chairman of the Board of Directors and the Director General of Anadolu Agency, and Mehmet Zahid Sobacı, the TRT Director General.
