Erdogan-Davutoglu poster breaks Guinness record

ISTANBUL

A giant poster showing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu side by side has entered the Guinness Book of World Records.

The 4,709 square meter poster, prepared by Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party, will be shown on Saturday when Erdogan and Davutoglu will hold a rally in Yenikapi Square, Istanbul, to mark the 562nd anniversary of Istanbul's conquest by the Ottoman Empire.

The poster features photos of Erdogan and Davutoglu, captioned with the slogan “The people are enough for us”, referring to the Turkish nation.

It was opened Friday in Yenikapi Square by nearly 100 people and Guinness authorities made the necessary measurements.

The Guinness Representative in Turkey, Referee Seyda Subasi Gemici told journalists that India held the Guinness Book of World Records for largest poster with a 3,361 square meter poster shown in 2014.

Gemici said that the Erdogan-Davutoglu poster in Turkey is 4,709 square meter large, and gave the record certificate to the head of AK Party Istanbul Provincial Directorate of Publicity and Media, Omer Faruk Besli and the New Turkey Digital Office Director, Gokhan Yucel.

Besli said that the poster will be shown a “surprise” to the President Erdogan and Prime Minister Davutoglu on Saturday.

Yucel said that thousands of photos taken from social media in Turkey and abroad were brought together to form the world’s largest poster. 

On May 29, 1453, Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II conquered Istanbul, then called Constantinople, where the Byzantines had ruled the Eastern Roman Empire for more than 1,000 years.

The city has moved its annual celebration for the first time from the traditional Balat district to the seaside Yenikapi area.

Events will be held on Saturday, rather than the actual anniversary date of Friday, to encourage more participation.

The event comes one week before the country's 25th general election slated for June 7.