Six opposition leaders meet to disclose their system proposal

ANKARA

The leaders of six Turkish opposition parties met on Feb. 28 to announce their joint proposal for the return of the parliamentary system and a road map explaining how it will be implemented if they come to power in the next elections.

It is the first common objective announced by these six parties who have vowed to endorse a joint presidential candidate against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Today’s meeting brought together main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, İYİ (Good) Party chair Meral Akşener, Democrat Party chair Gültekin Uysal, Felicity Party head Temel Karamollaoğlu, Democracy and Progress Party (DEVA) leader Ali Babacan and Future Party chair Ahmet Davutoğlu.

The leaders announced a document that outlines the structure of what they call the strengthened parliamentary system and its basic components in a bid to replace the existing executive-parliamentary system.

They had their first meeting over dinner on Feb. 12 and agreed to make their joint work public on Feb. 28.

Kılıçdaroğlu had described the six-party partnership as historic and a strong signal for the opposition victory in the next elections. Turkey will hold the presidential and parliamentary polls simultaneously in June 2023.

Against the opposition alliance, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) make up the People Alliance. Erdoğan will be the People Alliance’s candidate, while the opposition has not yet announced who will run against him.

Russian attack unacceptable

Meanwhile, Kılıçdaroğlu strongly criticized Russia for attacking Ukraine, saying it an unacceptable act.

“The incursion of a nuclear-powered state into a non-nuclear state is neither humanitarian nor acceptable in terms of international law,” he said over the weekend. A country should better show its strength in culture, industry or technology but not through use of its military force, Kılıçdaroğlu said.