Erzurum Technical University (ETU) Rector Prof. Dr. Bülent Çakmak published a message on the 103rd anniversary of Erzurum's liberation from the occupation of the enemy. In his message, Rector Prof. Dr. Bülent Çakmak expressed his thought as below;

Every city has a soul, and people living in these cities create these souls through the collective consciousness at the end of historical, social, and political experiences for centuries. The spirits of some cities are composed through this consciousness by guiding the destiny of the whole nation that constitutes any country. There are very few cities in the world that affect the fate of a nation. Cities emerged with the spirit that are vital to shaping the fate of nations from the first moment, also shape the future of the nation with the courage of the people. Erzurum is one of these cities with such a spirit and from the first moment Anatolia started to become the homeland of the Turkish nation Erzurum as a whole Turkish homeland witnessed this spiritual journey from the peaks of Palandöken mountains., With the courage given by the fire of independence that was lit in Erzurum on March 12, 1918, it creates its own destiny. Erzurum is a city where the consciousness of being a nation sprouts on the edge of the abyss, and it will continue to be one of the key cities of the Turkish nation's historical adventure since it determined the fate of the nation within that period. On this occasion, I remember with gratitude the nameless heroes who sacrificed their lives to save Erzurum from enemy occupation.