MP breaks silence over resignation

FORMER Labour and Social Security Minister Koral Çağman quit because of “extreme stress and unhappiness” at not being able to serve with “honesty and transparency”.

Democrat Party (DP) MP Çağman broke his silence over his resignation, which he handed in to Prime Minister Ersan Saner last month, as previously reported by this paper.

No-one else has been appointed to the vacant role, with DP leader and Tourism and Environment Minister Fikri Ataoğlu saying he will also take on the Labour and Social Security Ministry portfolio.

In a farewell message issued a week after his resignation was first made public, Çağman, a general surgeon by profession, said that he left his job as minister, which he took on last December without any “personal interest and political expectations”, with “the peace of mind that he kept his promise to serve with honesty and do the right thing based on his character”.

Emphasising that his “longing to return to medicine and his patients far exceeded his desire to remain in politics”, the Girne MP said: “I also learned that personal ethics is a necessary factor in politics but often isn’t enough.”

He said he “fulfilled his duty as Minister without being in the limelight” and that he was leaving his role “with a clear conscience and without any stain on my record”.

Dr Çağman continued: “Politics is the art of maintaining a balance between the multifaceted mechanism of the state and the people. The way to achieve this balance requires operating the mechanism with a humanistic approach.

“During my tenure as minister, I have tried very hard to achieve this balance through my best efforts in a transparent manner and in keeping with my principle of honesty.

“I have served the people as a surgeon for decades in line with certain principles and beliefs. However, I have realised that the anxiety of not being able to serve my people with the same honesty and transparency in the ministry office pushed me to extreme stress and unhappiness.”

Dr Çağman noted that when he entered politics he had two stents in place in January 2018 but now has eight stents. He said that this is a “clear indicator that stress and weariness has caused health problems” and that “continuing in this role would be an invitation for more serious health issues”.

Dr Çağman thanked “my ministry staff, my invaluable department managers and my family who stood by me during this time”.