Main opposition CHP leader calls on citizens to 'punish thieves' at elections

ESKİŞEHİR

CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu addresses his supporters in Edirne. AA Photo

The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader has called on citizens to "punish the thieves" at the upcoming local elections, continuing to press the government over corruption allegations.

“I am addressing my citizens who voted for the [Justice and Development Party] AKP, whose prime minister calls his son to ask him to 'zero the money.' Does your conscience accept this?” Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu said during an election rally March 2 in the Thracian province of Edirne.

Kılıçdaoğlu said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was "the reason for corruption and unemployment in Turkey," adding everyone should "think about the country and their children, not themselves." 

Using harsh language throughout his speech, the CHP leader called Erdoğan a "thief and a liar" and repeated his belief that the prime minister should step down.

Kılıçdaroğlu underlined that the extent of the corruption revealed was up to 87 billion euros and the money that was taken out of the Erdoğan estate was 1 billion euros.

He stated that this should be punished at the ballot box. “Are you going to vote for the sons of this country or the sons of shady ministers?” he asked, adding that the CHP was "the place where the sons of this nation meet."