Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Credit: BBC)
On Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan cancelled his scheduled election campaign rallies due to a “minor sickness.’’
“I will rest at home today as our doctors advised,’’ Mr Erdoğan wrote on Twitter, citing health problems he suffered a day before.
The president said he would resume the campaign on Thursday.
Mr Erdoğan was scheduled to attend campaign speeches in three separate central Anatolian provinces on Wednesday.
Late on Tuesday, Mr Erdoğan had to briefly cut a live television interview after he suffered what he later described as stomach upset.
The Kanal 7 station cut broadcasting after Mr Erdoğan, off camera, failed to respond to a question on his election promises.
Some muffled voices were heard from the microphone, but the cameras did not show Mr Erdoğan.
The interviewer stood up while a concerned voice was heard saying, “Oh no!” in the background.
It was not immediately clear how serious the president’s health issue was.
The 69-year-old later returned to finalise the interview, where he said an intense election campaign led to some “serious” stomach troubles.
The ailing Mr Erdoğan said he considered cancelling the interview ahead of time.
“Thank God, our president’s health is good,’’ his spokesman İbrahim Kalın said on Twitter.
The joint opposition candidate for president, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, separately wished Mr Erdoğan a speedy recovery on Twitter.
The parliamentary and presidential elections on May 14 are considered the toughest test for Mr Erdoğan’s 20-year rule, as a united opposition bloc pushes to replace him amid a serious economic crisis and growing resentment over millions of refugees in the country.
(dpa/NAN)
