Following the Presidential Cabinet Meeting organized via video conference at the Huber Villa in Tarabya, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that they have held the 29th meeting of the Cabinet.
President Erdoğan noted the following:
“I wish to God that Ramadan, the first fasting of which was observed on Friday, brings well-being to our nation, to the Islamic world and to entire humanity. I also wish that the Ramadan month, the beginning of which is compassion, the middle of which is forgiveness and the end of which is salvation from eternal torment, will strengthen our unity, solidarity, fraternity and cooperation. I hope that this holy month will contribute to liberation of the oppressed people who have been suffering persecution throughout the world. By overcoming Covid-19, which has become a global disaster, we hope to enjoy a double feast at the end of Ramadan.”
“We are currently bringing back home a total of our 25 thousand citizens from 59 countries”
Stating that the country and the nation have entered a period, in which the concrete results of the fight against the coronavirus pandemic started to be obtained, Erdoğan continued as follows:
“Thank God, even though the total number of tests has approached 1 million, the number of new patients and deaths is decreasing day by day. The number of patients recovered exceeds the number of new patients, which is an important breaking point in a positive direction. Turkey is the best country in Europe in terms of the death rate, compared to the total number of patients. Our health system, which is capable of easily handling the pandemic, has been keeping on operating also in other services without any disruption. We have not contented ourselves with protecting the health of our citizens in our country and treating them. We have also supported our brothers and sisters around the world. We have brought to Turkey nearly 40 thousand citizens of us, who are not residents abroad, but who have gone abroad for education, umrah or short-term travel purposes.
We have firstly quarantined all of our citizens at student dormitories upon their arrival in our country, and discharged them for their home, after making sure of their health. We are currently bringing back home a total of our 25 thousand citizens from 59 countries. We will also discharge them for their homes, after they complete their quarantine periods at the dormitories.”
“Not a single citizen of us has been abandoned”
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also indicated that they have not abandoned any citizen, who were living abroad and diagnosed with a heavy disease and who have not or could not have received treatment at places where they lived.
Recalling that they have brought to Turkey Emrullah Gülüşken, who lived abroad and who has not been treated despite suffering the pandemic in Sweden, by responding to his daughter’s call, Erdoğan said, “The air ambulance that we sent to Sweden yesterday morning brought our patient into our country. He is currently receiving treatment at Ankara City Hospital. God willing, we will send our brother home after he is healed.”
Erdoğan stressed that it was a known fact that many seriously ill patients in Europe and the US have been left alone due to a lack of health insurance coverage or lack of capacity at hospitals, and made the following remarks:
“Thank God, not a single citizen of us has been rejected by hospitals in our country, none of their treatment has been ignored and neglected, and none of our citizens has been abandoned. We provide all our citizens with first-class healthcare services thanks to our current hospitals and the newly opened ones, as well as our health institutions that we have restructured and redesigned against the pandemic.
We hope that those who have been criticizing the healthcare system and infrastructure of our country for many years are now feeling a little bit of embarrassment upon seeing the current outlook. During the pandemic, we have had the chance to test our country’s infrastructure and production capacity in all fields ranging from healthcare services to basic requirements such as masks, protective overalls, medications, disinfectants and food. Thousands of thanks to God that we could have overcome this challenging time honourably.”
Stating that Turkey has provided 55 countries with equipment aimed at fighting the pandemic up to now, Erdoğan said, "We have become hope for the friendly and brotherly societies throughout the world, and we have encouraged them to struggle. We have not hesitated to provide our friends in a wide geography stretching from the Balkans to Africa with our possibilities during a period in which even the developed countries ask for support from Turkey. Finally, we will send medical supplies consisting of masks, face protectors, shields, N95 masks, overalls and disinfectants to the US tomorrow. The military cargo planes of the Turkish Armed Forces that carry this equipment will take off from Turkey towards the US tomorrow.”
Erdoğan said that Turkey has left behind the hard times thanks to the motivation through which it looked at the future in a more confident and hopeful manner, adding, "We are beginning to obtain the results of sacrifice that we have patiently made by taking strength from our faith, our national unity, our advanced domestic production infrastructure and our exemplary solidarity. I wholeheartedly believe that our country will reach a position beyond its targets for 2023 in the world to be restructured after the crisis.”
“For Turkey, light at the end of the tunnel is seen”
Stating that Covid-19 is spread from person to person, President Erdoğan continued as follows:
“In order to maintain this good course in our country, we are planning to sustain the curfew on weekends until the end of the feast. This weekend, we will again apply a curfew in 31 provinces for 3 days due to May 1.”
“For Turkey, the light at the end of the tunnel is seen, and it’s almost time to receive a recompense for our sacrifices and efforts,” Erdoğan said.
Recalling that many packages have been launched to prevent the negative effects of the measures gradually implemented to fight the pandemic at all segments, Erdoğan emphasized that the support provided within the framework of the Economic Stability Shield has totalled 200 billion TL.
"We are Self-Sufficient, Turkey"
President Erdoğan noted that the donations received as part of the national solidarity campaign “We are Self-Sufficient, Turkey” have been used for the support and relief packages, adding, “A total of 1 billion 850 million TL has been collected so far in the campaign. I call on our philanthropic and charitable people to support our campaign. We have also increased the budgets of our social assistance programmes.”
Stating that a new era was about to start in Turkey and around the world, mainly in politics, Erdoğan continued as follows:
"My precious nation, God willing, now we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. God willing, we hope to enjoy a double feast at the end of Ramadan. With these feelings, I wish you a happy holy month of Ramadan. I wish that God will approve and accept your fasts and worships you perform, and I, personally and particularly on behalf of my Cabinet, congratulate and extend my gratitude to my nation for paying proper attention and adhering to the restrictions imposed for the weekends. This is in and itself what solidarity means; this is what unity and solidarity is all about. With this sense of brotherhood and fraternity, God willing, we will overcome the coronavirus. I wish God’s mercy upon our citizens who have lost their lives due to the pandemic, and patience for their relatives and loved ones. I, personally and on behalf of my nation, would like to thank particularly all our healthcare professionals and workers, as well as wish God’s mercy upon those who have lost their lives during this period.”