SerpApi.Org
A Turkish governor has been removed from office after attracting criticism about his attire.
Mehmet Fatih Çiçekli was dismissed last week without reason after sharing a series of photos and videos of himself on social media wearing Lycra cycling shorts.
A number of politicians had publicly rebuked the governor of Ardahan province for “spending all day creating social media content” in recent months and “wearing cycling tights all day”.
İnan Akgün Alp, MP for the Republican People’s Party, said: “A governor in leggings? That simply won’t do. Such governors should be removed from office – or at least issued a fig leaf.”
He also accused Mr Çiçekli of “abandoning the seriousness and dignity of state office”.
Şamil Tayyar, deputy for the Justice and Development Party, accused Mr Çiçekli of demeaning his status in politics by frequently appearing in cycling gear: “Neither citizens nor his own civil servants will take a governor in leggings seriously,” he said. “He has no authority.”
The governor, who was born in 1976, entered the civil administration service in 2004 and was appointed governor to Ardahan in January.
He was sacked on July 17 after a decree signed by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the Turkish president.
But, a day after he was fired, a petition was launched demanding his reinstatement. It has already garnered nearly 10,000 signatures.
“The decision to remove Ardahan Governor Mehmet Fatih Çiçekli from his post has caused sadness and concern among many citizens who care about the future of our province,” the petition said, adding that it “has no political aims”.
It said Mr Çiçekli had “accomplished significant work” in sport and youth development and had helped cycling tourism in the mountainous region to flourish.
“Sports activities for young people have increased, and young people’s habits of participating in sports have been developed,” supporters wrote.
Mr Çiçekli, a keen cyclist, regularly posted about the sport on social media. He recently called for a biking festival in Ardahan and published videos of himself riding his bike and rowing.
Mr Alp, one the governor’s most vocal opponents, debated his attire in parliament earlier this month.
“He goes around among citizens wearing cycling tights all day,” he said. “That’s no way for a governor to behave.”
News of the governor’s dismissal was not well received in Europe, with Nacho Sánchez Amor, the European Parliament’s rapporteur on Turkey, accusing Mr Alp of “endorsing the Islamic conservative agenda”. He posted a powerful response on social media.
“A normal citizen wearing sport clothes when doing sport,” Mr Sánchez Amor wrote, alongside old photographs of women wearing long dresses while cycling. “Is this the CHP proposal for women?”
Mr Çiçekli also defended his attire, saying: “The clothes I’m wearing are sports clothes.”
He added: “Actually, sometimes you need to forget. Rather than living through titles and labels, it’s good to know you’re a human being and remain one.
“The things that make you yourself, such as sports, cycling and rowing, aren’t bad things. They’re things that everyone, at every age, should be doing.”
Mr Çiçekli, who was replaced by Ömer Hilmi Yamlı, has vowed to “keep pedalling”.
