Prime Minister Erdoğan rejected criticism about the wise people commission he set up saying that "The task and mission is more significant than how the list was prepared, and who took a place in it".

Erdoğan met the "wise people" for the first meeting on Thursday at Dolmabahçe.

"Those who are not part of the solution but are part of the problem - he said speaking to the 63 people selected - cannot weaken our decisions with their criticism".

The prime minister said that his government has been left alone by other political parties, but had a strong backing from the people, during the process.

He thanked those who accepted their nominations in the commission which is made up of 51 men and just 12 women. Erdoğan added that the province of Diyarbakır will "have what İstanbul has".

"Could you believe - he said - that an airport would be built in the southeastern and eastern provinces of Hakkari and Iğdır 10 years ago? The amount of investment made in the region [during the AK Party's government] reached $40 billion over the past 10 years".