AKP member removed from party meeting in Adıyaman after saying, 'I'm starving'

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The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Parliamentary Group Deputy Chair Mahir Ünal visited the party organization on Friday (January 14) in the southeastern province of Adıyaman.

While Ünal was giving a speech at a party meeting, a member of the party began shouting, "Mr. Minister, I'm unemployed, I'm starving. Our real problem is unemployment."

When the man interrupted him, Ünal was talking about "two of our police chiefs martyred by terrorists in 2015."

The man, who was identified as Ali Avcı, a farmer and an AKP member, was then removed from the hall by other party members.

Later, Avcı and Ünal gave an interview to the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA) together. Avcı said he has a herd of 100 sheep and received 3,000 lira of assistance from the municipality.

However, Avcı later said, the video released by AA did not include most of his words. "Televisions show nothing as they are, they are getting orders from some places," he told Halk TV on Saturday.

After he was removed from the hall, party officials berated him, he said.

Avcı said he had taken out a loan of 100,000 lira to set up a farm, but his farm was demolished because of a highway construction, Avcı explained. He then had to sell his animals for 70,000, he noted.

I'm not a provocateur. Mahir Ünal did not listen to me," said the farmer. "I won't continue at the AKP from now on. They slandered me."  (AEK/VK)