President and AK Party Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan addressed citizens during a campaign rally in the province of Erzurum in the run-up to the local elections scheduled for March 31, 2019.

Pointing out that the torch of Turkiye’s national struggle was lit a century ago in Erzurum, President Erdoğan noted that they will be celebrating the centennial of the Erzurum Congress, one of the milestones of the Turkish War of Independence, this year.

Drawing attention also to the investments made in Erzurum in a large variety of areas including, education, technology, healthcare, transportation and housing, President Erdoğan said that the businesspeople in Erzurum have been provided with investment incentives totaling some 3 billion Turkish liras and that additional employment has been created for 9,613 people.

Noting that Turkiye has endured attacks over the past six years more than ever in its history, President Erdoğan said: "That dark chapter in the history of coups, juntas, and tutelages in Turkiye tells us to hold more tightly to our future and independence."

President Erdoğan further stressed: "When we speak about the presence of a matter of survival for Turkiye, some make fun of that. However, any attempt at a coup, junta or tutelage in the history of our country amounts to a matter of survival."

ILKHA