From the first moment Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu emerged, he was a challenge in the political scene to Greece’s neighbouring country. Whispers were heard in almost every step: “He’s Greek”. “His grandfather’s name was Heliopoulos.” “He’s Greek.” “His grandfather’s name was Heliopoulos.” “He’s a favourite among Greeks.” They even called him “Ekrem Giannis”. How could the name… “Yannis” be Imamoglu?

He feels outraged when asked. “My lineage is well known, we go back 8-9 generations. If I respond to such pettiness, I will become like them.” He sees petty politics behind such rumours, which, however, have not paid off. By focusing on his election campaign, need for increased subsidies, free transport and green investments, he spoke to the hearts of an audience who were of different political, social and religious persuasions and became the “Porter” of the City once again.

It proved that approximately 17 million inhabitants of Istanbul are mainly concerned about whether they will be able to live in better conditions the day after, rather than whether the mayor is… a Trojan horse for the Greeks to take back the City. In Greece, on the other hand, people try to find out if he is even a little philhellene, as current signs seems ambiguous…

Pontius Ekrem

In the village of Platana, or Aksabat, Trebizond, where Imamoglou was raised and went to school, an enormous bronze statue stands proudly on the beach. It is the Kemenetzis. A man in the traditional Pontian costume, playing the lyre. This lyre and the traditional Pontian songs, when Ekrem hears them, he wails silently. To that end he is an excellent dancer and never misses an opportunity to prove it.

Looking back to 2016 when Imamoglu was the mayor of Beylikduzu, a small (by City standards, having a population of around 410,000) municipality on the European side of Istanbul. Together with a large delegation he visited the holy city of Giannitsa, that is sacred to the Turks, a place to worship the Mausoleum of the Ottoman Bey and military commander Gazi Evrenos. There, as he visited his counterpart at the town hall, who was the president of the Pontian club “Euxinos Leklos Leklos Yiannitses” Apostolos Aslanidis.

“Are you Karadeniz?” he asks him. Imamoglu is thrown from his chair like a spring. Kara-deniz is the Black Sea in Turkish and that’s how (Karadeniz) the Pontians are called. The two men quickly began an emotional and nostalgic conversation about the villages of Platanas. Aslanidis then showed him around Giannitsa and took him to the settlement of Nea Trebizond. His eyes watered when Aslanidis explainsed to him that the design of the square is the same as that of “Gyaur Meydan” which today is called “Ataturk Alani,”  and is located at the central square of Trebizond, which is rooted with Hellenism. Later, at Aslanidis’ house, Imamoglou was presented with a photo taken in 1900 of the Preschool of Trebizond built by his grandfather Apostolos Iliopoulos. He also had a surprise in store for him: An authentic Pontic feast, in which “Caradenese” enjoyed the lyre, spoke the Pontic dialect to those present, and danced to his heart’s content to the amazement of the Pontians who saw him.

When Imamoglou returned to Polis, he made certain to reciprocate and sent a jersey of Trabzonspor, which is the local team of Trabzon (for which Imamoglou played football for up to the semi-professional level), with the number 61 and the name “Iliopoulos” in memory of his grandfather Aslanidis. This “Iliopoulos” discovered by some Turkish journalists and – urged by the paraphilology that wanted to see Imamoglu as being of Greek origin – in addition to the fact that the shirt had the number 61 (the number that Imamoglu himself always played with) apparently they “translated” it in their own terms.

In reality, Imamoglou is a Pontian, which has made him maintain strong ties with everything that has to do with the wider region, especially Trebizond. In the village where he grew up, after all, in Platana, the ancient Hermonassa, the Greek element did not disappear with the Great Eradication. The old Greek mansions remain, while the old Virgin’s School, today’s primary school in the area, with the preserved marble inscription in Greek: “This holy mosque of the Muses of the Virgins was erected at the expense of the Muse-loving patriotic sons Alex. Mavroidi Georgiou Dimitriou Panagiotou Konstantinou Ioannou if the country invokes God’s blessing and then the plaque is attached with a resolution of memory and gratitude. Platana September 1, 1893”. The people of Trabzon who go to visit the land of their ancestors are surprised to find that even in the primary schools of the area, many children speak Romani. The Pontic dialect that forms the linguistic bridge between ancient and modern Greek.

Somehow, it is no coincidence that Imamoglou knows Pontic and a little Greek, just as it is no coincidence that he was described as “Greek” and crypto-Christian. Besides, the issue was raised by the (close to Erdogan’s AKP) mayor of Esenler in the City, Tefvik Gyoksu, who in 2019 had stirred up a storm of reactions when he said that Imamoglu was elected by the residents of Trabzon, who are Greek. “Dishonorable, vile, vile, a monster”, he was then characterised by the Güoksu executive of Meral Aksener’s Good Party, saying: “Shame on those who will vote for them in Trebizond, Suleiman Soylu tonight must remove the mayor of Esenler from his duties. This city does not accept such insults. This scoundrel who called the residents of Trebizond Greeks must be removed. As a minister from Trebizond himself, he must do it.”

On Twitter, the hashtag #Trabzonlular (inhabitants of Trabzon, that is) became the first trend in the country as the discussions and arguments flared up: Are the majority of Trabzon residents Greek, who converted to Islam for fear of persecution, and crypto-Christians? And if so, is Imamoglu one of them?

Imamoglu felt he was losing the battle with such absurdities. He was forced to assert everywhere that his family tree goes eight generations back and consists of Turks and to also pray publicly in Istanbul, in order to somehow entertain the rumours and convince even those sceptics that he was not put by the Greeks to… to conquer the city.

Politics passes the ball

If love goes through the stomach, then politics definitely goes through football. Imamoglu has been a player and since 2012 an administrative factor and member of the Board of Directors of Trabzonspor. By diabolical coincidence, 2012 is the same year that the beloved team of Trabzon will manage to put in their ranks and make a “flag” of the Greek striker Fanis Geka, ending a multi-year attempt to acquire him from Akhisar’s team. Gekas will become the favorite striker of Pontus teams, going through Akhisar, Trabzonspor, Samsunspor and Sivasspor.

And Trabzonspor, after Geka, will become the team with the richest Greek roster in Turkey, as the – favorite of the stands – captain of the Greek National Team Tasos Bakassetas and Siopis, Kourbelis, Fountas will pass through its ranks.

Contact with football, but also with the Greek element, Imamoglu had in Pontos teams and especially Trabzonspor. Before his master’s degree at the University of Istanbul, Imamoglou studied in the occupied territories of Cyprus, specifically in Kyrenia. There he continued his football career as the main goalkeeper of the Turk Ocagi Limasol team of Limassol.

Makarios and the “peace operation”

From the years in Cyprus, he acquired a special relationship with Megalonisos. And he proved this when, as mayor of Beylikduzu, in Istanbul, he erected a monument to Megalonisos, which he himself calls “The Struggle for Cyprus” and got him into… trouble. The monument, which was erected in 2017, depicts Rauf Denktash and the signing of the London Agreement, 1959, being signed by Makarios, Sir Hugh Foot (Governor of Cyprus), Fazil Koutchuk (Chairman of the Cyprus is Turkish” and its vice-president until 1973) and Denktas.

The monument, which essentially deified what preceded it and paved the way for the invasion of “Attila” in Cyprus, caused an explosion of anger in the nationalist and Islamist circles of Turkey and became a topic of discussion in the Turkish media for a long time, especially when members of the “Grey Wolves” » they vandalised it, erasing the face of Archbishop Makarios – his presence, after all, was what angered them.

Imamoglu, to face this storm, was forced to give a press conference, after earlier having visited Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Presidential Palace to give him explanations and get the president’s “OK” for the preservation of the monument. Previously, of course, the Turkish president himself had condemned Imamoglu for erecting “a monument to a Greek leader who called for the massacre of all Turkish Cypriots”.

At the press conference, Imamoglu, after thanking the “Grey Wolves” party, the nationalist MIR party, the BVR and Meral Alperen for their support, spun a nationalist narrative in which he called the invasion of “Attila” a “peace operation” who drowned Cyprus in blood and “enemy” Makarios: “When we talk about Cyprus, of course, there is the peace operation and we remember with respect the late Etcevit, the then prime minister of our country who took the brave step. I also remember with respect and gratitude the late Erbakan, the head of the National Salvation Party, who achieved mental unity, spiritual unity and national unity [during the invasion period].”

He explained that the monument in its original form was larger and contained pieces with Ecevit and Erbakan and the “struggle” for Cyprus from the Ottoman period to the present day. And, to persistent questions about Makarios, he said: “We just depicted a deal with the enemy. The monument shows a stressed Makarios, but a mighty Denktash. I love Rauf Denktash, Cyprus, the national struggle there, the establishment of the TRNC and the peace operation of 1974. The London Agreement was the strongest foundation for the 1974 operation.”

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Juvanidis, Valouklis and… the new Erdogan

In a much more recent incident, the one following the devastating fire at Istanbul’s historic Greek hospital, Valoukli, the mayor of Istanbul came under fire from Turkey’s opposition media for a… phone call.

This phone call by the angry Imamoglu was made to the president of the Valouklis Foundation, Constantinos Iouvanidis, when the latter, speaking to the pro-government newspaper “Sabah Daily”, thanked President Erdogan and his government for the support, while at the same time criticising Imamoglu for not showing due attention. The moment of the phone call was caught on video, in which Imamoglou can be heard telling Iouvanidis that he was disturbed by what he said in the interview and by the fact that he failed to mention that the Municipality of Istanbul had sent a team of seven people to help.

“Your interview was unfortunate,” Imamoglou told Iouvanidis, reminding him that he had called him to ask if he could be of any help, and suggested that he demand a correction from Sabah if he thought what he said had been distorted.

A storm of negative comments followed from journalists and social media users who criticised him for the disagreement with the president of a minority institution. “He is acting as a new Erdogan. We don’t need dictatorial attitudes,” some wrote.

“Greek-Turkish friendship is the only solution”

However, in contrast to his comments about the “peace operation” in 1974 in Cyprus, “enemies” and thank you to the far-right and ultra-nationalists of the neighbour, Imamoglou tries to show a completely different profile when he talks to Greeks. A profile that supports his pro-European doctrine more.

In 2021, for example, he visited the then mayor of Athens, Kostas Bakoyannis, with whom he laid the foundations for a relationship of friendship and cooperation. In front of him, he said that Constantinople and Athens are two cities linked by a common fate and, therefore, must together find solutions to the problems faced by Greece and Turkey. “Friendship between the two countries is not one of the solutions, it is the only solution,” he said, before later visiting Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

This visit of his, however, angered (again) the nationalists. They criticised Imamoglou for accepting… a challenge from Kostas Bakoyannis, as “he heard him smilingly call Istanbul Istanbul and did not correct him”. This time Imamoglu did not apologise. On the contrary, he sought greater cooperation and even donated a bench to Bakoyannis, last year, when he visited him.

The bench, a symbol of friendship between the two cities, was placed in Technopolis and the mayors of the two cities sat and discussed on it, in the Bakoyannis initiative for the Network of Balkan Cities. At the time, in fact, the Turkish mayor had prepared his visit with a simple statement: “When I look at the Balkans, I don’t see a world of kings and sultans. Athens and Istanbul are brothers, just as Taksim Square and the Syntagma, where citizens gather, are brothers.

For this friendship, Ekrem Imamoglu was targeted by the Turkish newspaper “Yeni Safak”, in June 2022, when he participated in the world premiere of the musical work “Immigration Accord – Dark Waters” composed by Fuat Saka and orchestrated by Vangelis Zografos, in Constantinople. Opening the event, Imamoglu said that immigration was changing the world. But not only that.

“Yeni Safak” wrote in a fiery article entitled “Imamoglu, who did not say a word about the military arms on the islands in Greece, called for peace, when Turkey expressed its reaction,” that as the crisis for the Aegean islands continues. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan used harsh language about the “over-armament” of Greece, Imamoglu replied that “the world is big enough and can accommodate all of us. It is enough for us to defend peace, brotherhood and equality. Let us all sing with one voice the song of peace and brotherhood. Let our voices drown out the voices of those who want war.”

Later, in 2023, in an interview with ERT, Imamoglu insisted on this “line”, noting that “relations between Turkey and Greece can become better. This would be an important message for world peace and tranquility.” The mayor of Istanbul, after explaining that he considers Turkey a part of Europe, as Europe is a part of Turkey, said: “There are many historical elements and features between Turkey and Greece that have been positive and help us focus on the positive side of their relations. Most of the time, I wonder why domestic politics brings the two countries against each other. I have always belonged to those who believe that, especially to past references, thatt our two countries, with its two leaders, who developed this constructive communication, a strong peaceful dialogue after the war, left us a valuable legacy. Relations between Turkey and Greece can be better. This would be an important message for world peace and tranquility.”

In conclusion, despite the fact that the AKP has attempted to portray him as a “Greek” even when he wears…a blue tie, in reality, Ekrem Imamoglu is not “Yiannis” at all. Not even “Ekrem Giannis”, as some in the Turkish press ironically have called him. He is a charismatic politician, the only one who has managed to defeat three times the all-powerful in the political scene, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the only one who appears to be an opponent of the Turkish president. He is not, on the other hand, the only Turkish politician who has called for friendship and peace between Greece and Turkey. The latter may be called upon to prove this in practice, as Mr. Erdogan has been called upon many times…