Party in Germany appears to be founded by Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Fatih Zingal, head of the DAVA party, which is seen as an offshoot of Erdogan’s ruling Turkish AKP party in Germany, said the proceedings for the official establishment of the party they are proceeding rapidlythe, and expressed his interest in the possible participation in that of the Turkish origin veteran soccer player of the German national team, Mesut Ezil, who in the past caused strong reactions due to his friendly relationship with Tayyip Erdogan.

In order for the party to be able to participate in the European elections in June, it should until March 18 to have submitted 4,000 signatures to the Federal Electoral Commission. According to the BILD newspaper, “some are still missing,” but DAVA head Fatih Zingal tells the paper that “the phone is on fire” and that the project is “getting a lot of support, among others by very prominent supporters”. There are celebrities who could be used to identify the problems that exist in society, notes Mr. Zingal, and cites 35-year-old Mesut Ozil, a former soccer player among others, as an example. Werder Bremen, Real Madrid, Arsenal and the German national team. “He’s a good kid, we think he’s great. He did a lot for the German national team. A great footballer, a great figure in public life”, he continues and adds that “of course we would be very happy if Özil would advertise DAVA and show what its program is – while he is recognized in German society, a player of the national team and considered integrated, by from one day to the next he is ostracized, so it becomes clear what problems a person of Turkish origin faces”.

Mesut Ezil was born in Germany to Turkish parents and at 18 he received German citizenship in order to continue his football career in the national team. He played in a total of 92 matches with the national team, with which he was declared world champion in 2014 in Brazil. In 2018, he left the national team after the uproar caused by posting photos of him with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. Ezil is a supporter of the organization “Grey Wolves”, and has a matching tattoo, and then accused the German Football Association, which criticized his behavior, of racism. For his part, Tayyip Erdogan had then supported the player, stating: “I kiss his eyes. I support Mesut Ezil for his statements.

According to BILD, the football player’s manager did not respond to a question from the newspaper about his intentions for possible participation in the party being founded.