Mustafa Sarıgül - Devoted to his constituency
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Gül Demir and Niki Gamm
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Şubat 28, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - Şişli is one of Istanbul’s modern districts today. Along with Nışantaşı, Teşvikiye and Maçka, it forms one of the most important municipalities within the metropolitan city of Istanbul.
This is an area of approximately 300,000 people with upscale but ageing apartment buildings, crumbling infrastructure, fashionable, brand name stores (especially for clothing and shoes), cinemas, restaurants and bustling crowds.
It’s hard to imagine that as recently as the 1850s this area was covered with vegetable and fruit gardens and that the road from Taksim to Pangalti on the outskirts was lined with graves. Şişli carries the name of a family engaged in making skewers (sis) who had a home there. As the city’s population grew, the well-to-do moved north toward Şişli and eventually the cemeteries were for the most part moved. The wealthy were joined by the much less well to do in middle class apartment buildings behind the major streets and then driven out by them to less crowded areas. Private apartments gave way to stores and elegant offices. Streets became overcrowded with cars and delivery trucks and people.
Leader required
The Şişli scenario was similar to that of the rest of Istanbul and required a leader who would take a serious interest in solving the area’s many problems. That person was and still is Şişli Mayor Mustafa Sarıgül, a good-looking 53-year-old who is serious but has an attractive smile to match his sense of humor. He has become deeply involved in solving the problems of Şişli and making the area a much nicer place to live, as he had pledged to do when running for office. Now he is running again for a third term.
When Sarıgül was elected mayor, he faced and still faces daunting tasks. He gets up at 6 a.m. to work until nearly midnight. One has to wonder how he keeps up the pace because he still finds time to run, swim and read books on political issues. Under him the municipality repaired infrastructure and got involved in education and health, two areas not normally handled by the smaller municipalities. Building restoration was encouraged. Campaigns were organized to promote sales. The mayor even set up a shelter for street animals. And he embarked on direct contact with mayors of the European Union and even set up an EU Center that provides information on what’s happening that affects Turkey in a weekly bulletin.
Sarıgül most recently introduced an integrated waste management project that he expects its successful implementation will serve as an example for other cities in Turkey. This is an 18-month long project that is financed by the European Union as part of efforts to increase the dialogue between Turkey and the EU.
Sarıgül believes that not enough is being done to inform the public regarding the EU. He said, "Our citizens don’t have enough information about the European Union which is the most important question concerning the EU today in Turkey. In particular the steps that Turkey has taken on the road to membership in the EU and the EU’s attitudes toward Turkey must be followed in a transparent manner by all Turks.
"What a pity that those who are responsible for this subject are not doing their duty completely. Neither the EU nor Ankara is doing its duty of informing the people who want Turkey to have a democracy that is modern, developed and excellent and who are ready to carry out all sorts of sacrifice."
Sarıgül’s ambitions have been directing his energy towards the betterment of the Şişli area. He’s been known to compare Nışantaşı to New York or Paris in terms of attractions at Christmas time. He even went so far as to suggest that no one would even miss those two cities’ decorations when they visited Şişli. A visit to Giresun and Ordu on the Black Sea at the invitation of NGOs there to join in festivities being held in the meadows above those two cities suggested to some that he is interested in national politics again or perhaps still.
Involved in community
Sarıgül’s smile was missing the day that Agos newspaper editor-in-chief Hrant Dink was murdered; the Armenian newspaper is located in Şişli. The mayor came to the murder site himself and in a public statement decried what he called an attack on Turkey’s democracy by people who wanted to divide the country. "Thoughts can never be silenced by crude force," Sarıgül said.
The murder of the Armenian editor was far different from another event that put the Şişli mayor back in the headlines. He presented Pope Benedict XVI with a dove as a symbol of peace during the latter’s visit to Turkey. He’s coming to be known by this white dove, a symbol of the Democratic Left Party, or DSP, that originated with the late Prime Minister Bülent Ecevit.
The Şişli mayor was a very prominent member of the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, and when he challenged the chairman of the CHP, Deniz Baykal, for the leadership of the party, he knew it would be tough to unseat the incumbent and the result was his being kicked out of the CHP. The suggestion has been that Baykal was far from happy to have such a rival in his party. Sarıgül now belongs to the DSP. He has an approval rating of 68 percent according to the most recent polls with 20 percent undecided.
Door-to-door campaigning
On the campaign trail, Sarıgül starts his day at election headquarters with the many volunteers who prepare yellow flowers, yellow umbrellas, yellow rosettes and the like and then he walks around the streets, house to house and door-to-door presenting these to the people living there. He also listens very carefully to what these people have to say. His campaign kicked off with a "Walk for Love" that attracted some 40,000 people.
Sarıgül maintains a very high profile in Şişli. He seems to be everywhere and especially where schools and education are concerned..
There seems little doubt but what Mustafa Sarıgül will be successful in the March 29 election and be able to further help the citizens of Şişli.
WHO IS MUSTAFA SARIGÜL?
Born in Erzincan in 1956, Mustafa Sarıgül attended school at Talatpasa and went on to Şişli and Zincirlikuyu, eventually graduating from Marmara University’s Education Faculty. He served in the Kagithane municipality, the greater municipality of Istanbul and the management of IETT (Istanbul Electric Tramway and Tunel Administration).
Sarıgül began his political life as a member of the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, Youth Branch Management Council and held various positions before becoming a member of Parliament in 1987. He later wrote about his experiences. It was only in 1999 that he decided to run for mayor of Şişli as a member of the CHP and later he won reelection with a record-breaking 70 percent of the vote for any CHP candidate. He was so good at his job that he received the medal for superior service from the president of Romania.
Sarıgül is married and has two children. He’s a fan of the Galatasaray football team.
It’s hard to imagine that as recently as the 1850s this area was covered with vegetable and fruit gardens and that the road from Taksim to Pangalti on the outskirts was lined with graves. Şişli carries the name of a family engaged in making skewers (sis) who had a home there. As the city’s population grew, the well-to-do moved north toward Şişli and eventually the cemeteries were for the most part moved. The wealthy were joined by the much less well to do in middle class apartment buildings behind the major streets and then driven out by them to less crowded areas. Private apartments gave way to stores and elegant offices. Streets became overcrowded with cars and delivery trucks and people.
Leader required
The Şişli scenario was similar to that of the rest of Istanbul and required a leader who would take a serious interest in solving the area’s many problems. That person was and still is Şişli Mayor Mustafa Sarıgül, a good-looking 53-year-old who is serious but has an attractive smile to match his sense of humor. He has become deeply involved in solving the problems of Şişli and making the area a much nicer place to live, as he had pledged to do when running for office. Now he is running again for a third term.
When Sarıgül was elected mayor, he faced and still faces daunting tasks. He gets up at 6 a.m. to work until nearly midnight. One has to wonder how he keeps up the pace because he still finds time to run, swim and read books on political issues. Under him the municipality repaired infrastructure and got involved in education and health, two areas not normally handled by the smaller municipalities. Building restoration was encouraged. Campaigns were organized to promote sales. The mayor even set up a shelter for street animals. And he embarked on direct contact with mayors of the European Union and even set up an EU Center that provides information on what’s happening that affects Turkey in a weekly bulletin.
Sarıgül most recently introduced an integrated waste management project that he expects its successful implementation will serve as an example for other cities in Turkey. This is an 18-month long project that is financed by the European Union as part of efforts to increase the dialogue between Turkey and the EU.
Sarıgül believes that not enough is being done to inform the public regarding the EU. He said, "Our citizens don’t have enough information about the European Union which is the most important question concerning the EU today in Turkey. In particular the steps that Turkey has taken on the road to membership in the EU and the EU’s attitudes toward Turkey must be followed in a transparent manner by all Turks.
"What a pity that those who are responsible for this subject are not doing their duty completely. Neither the EU nor Ankara is doing its duty of informing the people who want Turkey to have a democracy that is modern, developed and excellent and who are ready to carry out all sorts of sacrifice."
Sarıgül’s ambitions have been directing his energy towards the betterment of the Şişli area. He’s been known to compare Nışantaşı to New York or Paris in terms of attractions at Christmas time. He even went so far as to suggest that no one would even miss those two cities’ decorations when they visited Şişli. A visit to Giresun and Ordu on the Black Sea at the invitation of NGOs there to join in festivities being held in the meadows above those two cities suggested to some that he is interested in national politics again or perhaps still.
Involved in community
Sarıgül’s smile was missing the day that Agos newspaper editor-in-chief Hrant Dink was murdered; the Armenian newspaper is located in Şişli. The mayor came to the murder site himself and in a public statement decried what he called an attack on Turkey’s democracy by people who wanted to divide the country. "Thoughts can never be silenced by crude force," Sarıgül said.
The murder of the Armenian editor was far different from another event that put the Şişli mayor back in the headlines. He presented Pope Benedict XVI with a dove as a symbol of peace during the latter’s visit to Turkey. He’s coming to be known by this white dove, a symbol of the Democratic Left Party, or DSP, that originated with the late Prime Minister Bülent Ecevit.
The Şişli mayor was a very prominent member of the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, and when he challenged the chairman of the CHP, Deniz Baykal, for the leadership of the party, he knew it would be tough to unseat the incumbent and the result was his being kicked out of the CHP. The suggestion has been that Baykal was far from happy to have such a rival in his party. Sarıgül now belongs to the DSP. He has an approval rating of 68 percent according to the most recent polls with 20 percent undecided.
Door-to-door campaigning
On the campaign trail, Sarıgül starts his day at election headquarters with the many volunteers who prepare yellow flowers, yellow umbrellas, yellow rosettes and the like and then he walks around the streets, house to house and door-to-door presenting these to the people living there. He also listens very carefully to what these people have to say. His campaign kicked off with a "Walk for Love" that attracted some 40,000 people.
Sarıgül maintains a very high profile in Şişli. He seems to be everywhere and especially where schools and education are concerned..
There seems little doubt but what Mustafa Sarıgül will be successful in the March 29 election and be able to further help the citizens of Şişli.
WHO IS MUSTAFA SARIGÜL?
Born in Erzincan in 1956, Mustafa Sarıgül attended school at Talatpasa and went on to Şişli and Zincirlikuyu, eventually graduating from Marmara University’s Education Faculty. He served in the Kagithane municipality, the greater municipality of Istanbul and the management of IETT (Istanbul Electric Tramway and Tunel Administration).
Sarıgül began his political life as a member of the Republican People’s Party, or CHP, Youth Branch Management Council and held various positions before becoming a member of Parliament in 1987. He later wrote about his experiences. It was only in 1999 that he decided to run for mayor of Şişli as a member of the CHP and later he won reelection with a record-breaking 70 percent of the vote for any CHP candidate. He was so good at his job that he received the medal for superior service from the president of Romania.
Sarıgül is married and has two children. He’s a fan of the Galatasaray football team.