The Küçükçekmece City Council Women’s Assembly, in collaboration with the Turkish Anti-Smoking Association, organized an information session on ‘Substance Abuse.’ Hosted by the Küçükçekmece Municipality at the Sefaköy Cultural and Art Center, the program was attended by Cemal Yılmaz, the Director of National Education for the Küçükçekmece District; Dr. Sibel Güllüçayır, Deputy Mayor of Küçükçekmece; Av. Mustafa Korkut, District Chairman of the AK Party; Former Minister of Tourism and Health Bülent Akarcalı; Mustafa Aydın, President of the City Council and Anti-Smoking Association; Özlem Erol, President of the City Council Women’s Assembly; and members of the Board of Directors of the Anti-Smoking Association.

Dr. Sibel Güllüçayır highlighted that the most significant step in the fight against smoking was the ban on smoking in enclosed spaces, noting, “Our President has succeeded in preventing smoking in closed areas. One of the architects of this success is Mr. Akarcalı. Young people are offered substances by saying they are something like cigarettes. As the Küçükçekmece Municipality, we have already started our fight against substance abuse for 7-8 months. We are considering awarding certificates of heroism to parents who have saved their children from substances and to anyone who has helped young people overcome substance addiction.” In his speech, City Council President Dr. Mustafa Aydın emphasized that all kinds of addiction start with smoking, stating, “Smoking is the plague of the 21st century, an obsession disease we call equals death. I thank our President, our Prime Minister, and all NGOs for standing by us in the fight against smoking. Bans can solve nothing if there is no education underlying them. You need to take care of your children and follow up on them. I commend everyone here and ask them to share everything they have learned with their neighbors and surroundings.” In the program moderated by Istanbul Aydın University Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences Professor Dr. Gülümser Ünkaya, experts including Yeşim Can from AMATEM, Neurologist Dr. Mehmet Yavuz, Clinical Psychologist Abdülaziz Yılmaz, Istanbul University Medical Faculty Addiction Treatment Supervisor Professor Dr. İlhan Yargıç, and Narcotics Chief Inspector Uğur Evcin provided comprehensive information on substance abuse.