Ruling AKP’s Bursa mayor Recep Altepe resigns after Erdoğan’s call

BURSA

Recep Altepe, the mayor of the northwestern province of Bursa from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), has announced his resignation. 

Altepe’s resignation, issued on Oct. 23, came amid an ongoing saga in the party, with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also calling on Ankara Mayor Melih Gökçek and Balıkesir Mayor Ahmet Edip Uğur to resign, citing a “regeneration process” ahead of the 2019 elections.

“We will never go against our party or our leader, nor give any damage to our party. We will do what befits us and we will not try to create a crisis environment. Under these circumstances I do not have any opportunity to provide service to my country, so I am resigning from my post as mayor,” Altepe told reporters in Bursa.

Just three days before his resignation, Altepe had vowed to continue to do his job, despite President Erdoğan’s call and persistent speculation.

Gökçek, meanwhile, held a meeting with Erdoğan on Oct. 23 at the presidential palace in Ankara.

Altepe’s resignation follows the resignation of the AKP’s mayors of Istanbul and Düzce, with Erdoğan warning that many party members are suffering from what he calls “metal fatigue.”

Niğde Mayor Faruk Akdoğan also resigned on Oct. 18.