President and AK Party Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan penned an article for the newspaper "Hep Birlikte Yeni Hedeflere (Together Towards New Goals)", in which he explained the activities of the AK Party governments under his leadership.
President Erdoğan made the following statements in an article published on the front page of the newspaper:
Dear Citizens
My Beloved Brothers and Sisters
"When we were living in a modest neighborhood of my beloved İstanbul with limited means, our elders used to say 'Our country is a paradise.'" We had a glorious past, a natural environment surrounded by seas on three sides and four distinct seasons. Nonetheless, millions of our people were having hardships. In fact, both our citizens and our state were destitute. I, like you, was unable to accept this situation and pondered, "Why not be better?" My goals and aspirations were great, and it would take a lifetime of dedication to accomplish them. I embarked upon my political journey with these sentiments.
“Looking back, I see that I devoted my life to fulfilling the dreams I had for my country.
When I became mayor of my beloved Istanbul, I realized that a city without a solid infrastructure could be deprived of even the most fundamental needs, such as water, and doomed to live in filth. I allocated the most resources to infrastructure. If the water is running without interruption in Istanbul today, it is thanks to the infrastructure investments we made back then."
When I looked at the world, I realized that no country could flourish without adequate roads, bridges, tunnels, and airports.
"I reasoned, 'Let's construct an infrastructure that will keep Türkiye comfortable for centuries, regardless of the availability of resources.'
Due to these considerations, we constructed the roads, bridges, tunnels, and airports that you see today, despite the presence of numerous obstacles. Over the years, you will see how these steps I have taken have enriched our country.
I observed the divisions in the world and saw that those nations that lack a robust military remain second-rate.
The defense industry of a nation serves as its bulwark. Without a strong defense, you will lose everything within.
For this reason, I have made strengthening our defense industry one of my top priorities, regardless of the cost and despite the opposition of the entire world.
As a nation of 85 million people, we each sacrificed a portion of our well-being to ensure the nation's security for the next century.
This power enabled us to defeat terrorist groups at home and abroad.
I realized that our ability to compete with other nations cannot be limited to the assembly and imitation industries.
Together, we were successful in producing our national and domestic automobile, TOGG, which will lead our industry and broaden the horizon for the youth of our nation. We have left a strong claim and imprint on the world's technological history."
Our country's greatest weakness was its external reliance on energy, which is the primary cause of global wars and the foundation of national prosperity and development.
We now own our own natural gas for the first time in our nation's history and have discovered vast oil reserves by overcoming external and internal obstacles with tenacity and resolve.
We are approaching our goal of becoming an independent country in energy by establishing Europe's largest solar and hydroelectric power plants.
“You will see some examples of how we strengthen the muscles of our country in this newspaper.
Having set out on such a path, we did not bow to the order of domestic and foreign power groups.
They rendered us a target.
But everyone, friend or foe, acknowledges this: 'There is no leader as hardworking as him'. These aspirations, objectives, and ideas inspire me to work day and night and give me strength.
I intend to complete all of these projects and fulfill my responsibility to my country, its youth, and its children.
Words fly, but WORK REMAINS.
As a person who was the mayor of the largest city of Türkiye, the prime minister of the Republic of Türkiye, and the president of the Republic of Türkiye, I saw and experienced all the offices and positions.
For others, these may be goals, but my sole objective is to steadfastly create the prosperous, joyous, and powerful Türkiye of which I have always dreamed.
I invite you to support the Century of Türkiye so that we can work hand in hand on this great and sacred road for another term and to realise big dreams together."
With My Most Heartfelt Greetings