Turkish politics to resume with heavy agenda

ANKARA

Ministers will convene at the cabinet meeting under the leadership of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan two weeks later. DAILY NEWS Photo / Selahattin Sönmez

Following the nearly 10-day break, the already-tense scene of Turkish politics is set to take up where it left off; with a heavy agenda.

On the top of list is the government’s promise to reduce the compulsory military service from the current 15 months to 12, which is expected to be discussed on Oct. 21 during the cabinet meeting.

Ministers will convene at the cabinet meeting under the leadership of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan two weeks later. The first and foremost issue to be accomplished seems to be reducing the duration of the military service. It was already reported that the General Staff had no opposition to the reduction, as it will not have a negative effect on the army and the opposition parties also back the idea of shortening military service. A governmental draft law could be signed by ministers today and could be sent to the Parliament Oct. 21.

Another important issue the Parliament has to deal with is the legal status of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) lawmaker Engin Alan, whose 18-year conviction has been approved by the Court of Appeals. Alan’s membership of Parliament risks to be dropped when the Court of Appeals’ final verdict is reached and is read at the Parliament. Eyes will be on Parliament Speaker Cemil Çiçek this week.

Apart from the Parliament’s other legislative activities, politics will be heavily engaged with the parties’ local election candidates. Neither the ruling nor the opposition parties have announced their nominees for key cities like Istanbul and Ankara. The Justice and Development Party (AKP) will continue to work on mayoral candidates during the party camp on Nov. 1 and 3 in Kızılcahamam. But its announcement of the candidates will be unlikely before mid-November.

The challenge awaiting the CHP is whether it will nominate the former CHP member and current mayor of the Şişli district of Istanbul Mustafa Sarıgül for Istanbul.