A country waiting to exhale

On the June 7 election day, the Turkish voter revealed loud and clear that it does not want to go even one step backwards from democracy and that it was totally closed to an authoritarian system. They have shown this by supporting the opposition while, at the same time, giving them a huge duty. 

Opposition parties were able to defeat the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) for the first time, which was the wish of the voter. 

The voter did not cast their votes for their true parties but voted against the AKP, according to the deputy distribution calculations, because their target was Erdoğan and the AKP. The demands of the voter are the transparency of every unjust, corrupt and swept-under-the-rug practice that happened in their 13-year rule and to bring the AKP to account. 

Also, there is a huge portion of the voter body who want to have a breath of fresh air. 

They want the economy to be back on track, for institutions to regain their reputations, for rule of law and values to be put back in their places. They have given this duty to the entire opposition because they have no hope left in the AKP.

New elections?

However, on the evening of the election day, Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli’s statement was understood differently by this voter segment, who thought he did not want to take on any duty.

While the counting of votes was ongoing, Bahçeli’s mention of an early election as an alternative reminded people of his decision to take the country to snap elections in 2002. Talking about a new one while the current one was not even completed brought to mind the question, “What is this statement while AKP has been defeated for the first time?”  

As a matter of fact, the first expectation of the voter was for the opposition to govern. They had shown before that they would never forgive the act of “avoiding to become the government” in past elections.

No doubt that nearly 60 percent of the voter portion was yearning for those days when innocent people were not sent to jail in waves, when life styles were not discussed and when considering others as enemies would come to an end. 

It is apparent that the voter will make those who avoid taking on a duty in the first minute before making the president withdraw to his constitutional boundaries, before making institutions an organ of the state and not one of a political party, that whoever circumvents these tasks, will pay the price.  

Each leader knows that that voter would not accept or understand a new election. 

A country where arms are silenced 

The same voter has also said that it is the parliament where all problems should be solved. 

Because it expects the government to solve the Kurdish issue, it has shown all political parties the parliament as the address of the solution, including the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP). 

The MHP should be able to see that the voter has made a call to “use this opportunity to create a country where arms are silenced;” however, the voter knows very well that this is not the only problem. 

Well, despite all these, why did Bahçeli talk about early elections? He may have given this reverse road signal in the first minute because he did not believe that the HDP would contribute to the silencing of arms.

However, it was expected from Bahçeli to first give his signal to the road ahead to form a government in a short time.