You should have made him all-powerful president

The length of the video recording of Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş’s speech on March 17 at his party’s parliamentary group meeting is 2 minutes 10 seconds. It takes about one minute, his explanation that he will make a very short speech; then he repeats this sentence four times, which became famous afterward: “We will not make you the president [of a presidential system].” 

Deputy Prime Minister Yalçın Doğan told Anadolu Agency that it was this speech that burnt bridges. “This, ‘We will not make Erdoğan the president’ was a huge provocation. This is the move that launched the real tension.” 

Akdoğan said, Erdoğan’s statement saying “I regard the monitoring committee inappropriate,” came on March 20 and that we have to be careful on the chronology. When Akdoğan said that, I did take a look at the chronology…

On Feb. 28, a meeting was held, which today Akdoğan almost totally rejects. Next day, the “pool” media wrote “Spring of Peace, now it is time for peace… Giant step to peace…” The Dolmabahçe agreement was made up of 10 items. This was defined as Öcalan’s call to lay down arms. Well, was everybody happy and content after this development? 

I want to say, “All of us or the majority of us were happy and hopeful,” but it was not so.
 
For instance, Erdoğan and Demirtaş started picking on each other as of March 1.

Kandil declaring that the laying down of the arms was not possible with the Domestic Security Package on the agenda those days, Demirtaş confirming this statement, Erdoğan’s “They are playing the two monkeys” statement; all of them happened within 24 hours.

On March 5, Cemil Bayık said, “First, solution, then arms.”

On March 7, Erdoğan made his famous speech at Gaziantep, saying, “Give me 400 deputies and this business will be solved in peace.”

Meanwhile, on March 8, Prime Minister Davutoğlu said the resolution process was at its most advanced stage. Then a couple of days passed as if there were no problems. 

Then, Erdoğan spoke at Balıkesir on March 15: “What do you lack as a Kurd in this country? What Kurdish issue? There is none. What do you want? What more do you want?”  

On March 17, known by everyone, the “We will not make you the president” speech came. 

On March 20, Erdoğan spilled the beans by saying, “I do not approve of the monitoring committee.” Even though Bülent Arınç on March 21 somehow warned Erdoğan by saying, “The government is running the country; the responsibility is on the government,” Ankara Mayor Melih Gökçek charged on him… 

This is the chronology. 

Akdoğan has revealed that at the essence of the real tension was the HDP’s daring to oppose Erdoğan’s presidential system presidency dreams.

They made colossal mistakes like Demirtaş’s speech, the HDP’s election campaign targeting Erdoğan and the shifting of the axis from Diyarbakır to Cihangir (what relevance this has with the resolution I don’t know.) 

They sinned, they betrayed…

Let me rephrase Akdoğan’s words, one by one:  

“You should have made him the all-powerful president. Now, there is no resolution for you…”