CHP Malatya district leaders locked out of party headquarters

On June 29, district chairs of the CHP in Malatya – Alper Gürsoy (Battalgazi), Halit Seyfi Yücel (Yeşilyurt) and women’s branch leaders – found the doors to their offices in the provincial party building changed and were denied entry. They said the newly appointed provincial chair Hakan Satılmış had the locks altered, removed photographs of Atatürk and İnönü, and barred party officials from their work spaces. The district leaders held a press conference outside the building, accusing the central party leadership of an “absolute butler” style takeover.

Following the removal of the provincial organization by the CHP central office, the dismissed provincial committee opened a contact office in the Özalper neighbourhood. Former provincial chair Barış Yıldız and Malatya MP Veli Ağbaba addressed supporters there, describing the events as “extraordinary” and stating they await decisions from party leader Özgür Özel. Yıldız warned that any “butler‑style” appointees would be confronted, while Ağbaba defended the party’s pandemic and earthquake aid work and denied any misuse of public funds. The dispute centres on internal party governance, with no official documentation of the dismissals released.