CHP leader urges party members not to disturb 'yes' voters if 'no' votes prevail in charter referendum

ANKARA

Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has urged party members not to disturb "yes" voters if "no" votes prevail in the April 16 referendum on constitutional amendments.

In a circular issued to the party’s provincial heads on April 14, Kılıçdaroğlu called on party members to "sustain serenity against all kinds of provocations" after the referendum results.

He also wanted party members not to celebrate the results in front of the headquarters of other parties that supported "yes" campaign and warned against public demonstrations until the referendum date.

Kılıçdaroğlu advised polling clerks not to leave their post until the referendum results are confirmed.

Speaking at a program in the Polatlı district of Ankara on April 15, Kılıçdaroğlu said the country was at a crossroads between a democratic parliamentary system and a "one-man regime". A "Yes" vote would put the country in danger, he said.

"We will put 80 million people onto a bus ... we don't know where it is headed," Kılıçdaroğlu said.

"We are putting 80 million on a bus with no brakes," he added.