Bahçeli lashes out at medical association head over remarks

ANKARA

The citizenship of the chairwoman of the Turkish Medical Association (TTB) should be revoked and the body should be closed, the leader of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) has said, in reaction to claims that the army has used chemical weapons in the fight against terror.

“The most reasonable action against the head of the TTB and other officials is that their citizenships should be revoked,” MHP Chairman Devlet Bahçeli said in his weekly address to his parliamentary group on Oct. 25.

TTB head Şebnem Korur Fincancı argued that the military used chemical weapons in the fight against terror. She was harshly criticized by the government and other oppositional parties while an Ankara court launched a probe against her.

Bahçeli said the TTB should be banned, and its officials should be obliged to become stateless persons by revoking their citizenships. He also slammed a decision by the Administrative Court who ruled the return of 178 judges to their jobs who were expelled due to their alleged links with FETÖ. “We consider this ruling as an insult against our people. We will never bow before those who are looking for a proper period to take the revenge of July 15,” Bahçeli said, referring to the coup attempt staged by the FETÖ people in 2016.

Bahçeli slams senior AKP official

MHP leader did also indirectly slammed deputy leader of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) Mahir Ünal who said that the republic has destroyed the Turkish culture and language. “Our republic is not an antithesis of our proud past. Those who think that our republic damaged the Turkish culture, language and thoughts are making an unfortunate, indescribable and unfounded mistake,” Bahçeli said.

Arguing that no thoughts can be produced through the current version of the Turkish is the distortion of the facts and against objectivity, the leader of the nationalist party said. The MHP and the AKP are allies in the People’s Alliance. Bahçeli has repeatedly underlined that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan remains to be the joint presidential candidate of the ruling alliance.