Analysis: Erdoğan not really leaving active politics

Serkan Demirtaş ANKARA

Turkey's President-elect Erdoğan and incoming PM Davutoğlu wave during the Extraordinary Congress of the ruling AKP in Ankara, Aug. 27. REUTERS / ÜMİT BEKTAŞ

Some called Aug. 27’s extraordinary convention of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) as a farewell congress to President-elect Recep Tayyip Erdoğan who left the party chairmanship to Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu. However, messages delivered by Erdoğan hinted that it won’t be an absolute departure from active politics in line with his earlier description of his forthcoming presidency. He will be a sweating, running president…

“This is not a farewell. We will again meet with you at our public rallies, during our visits to 81 provinces,” Erdoğan addressed his AKP fellows during his nearly two-hour long speech. Therefore he confirmed that he will soon hit the roads again to hold public rallies in Turkey’s cities, this time, to thank the Turkish people for electing him as the 12th president.

Needless to say that these rallies will highly be political in which Erdoğan will find the opportunity to address his views on political matters. These rallies have already been seen by the oppositional parties as Erdoğan’s efforts to ask for votes at the upcoming 2015 elections. President-elect Erdoğan recalled once again the importance of the 2015 polls and the majority the AKP will get at Parliament in order to accomplish their aim in changing the constitution in favor of a presidential system. 

In fact, he does not hide that he will be heavily involved in daily political issues. “I am not going to be a president that blocks government’s actions but a president that enables the government to serve better to the public,” he stressed. Plus, he will not only support and contribute to government, but also the AKP which he calls “his fifth child.”

One of the areas he will never lose interest will be the ongoing fight against pro-Fethullah Gülen community in the police and judiciary, which he calls “the parallel state.” “No one shall expect me to remain silent against this treacherous gang as president,” Erdoğan vowed, also instructing the next government not to show a piece of tolerance against this organization within the state.   

Davutoğlu’s speech also supported this idea. “Our biggest assurance is Mr. Erdoğan at president,” he said while thanking congress for electing him as the new AKP chairman. One other thing he underlined was that there will never be a conflict or disharmony between him and the president, as both come from the same political movement.

The fact that both men have underlined the upcoming judges and prosecutors supreme council election as one of their immediate priorities, it’s no doubt that we’ll continue to see an orchestrated and coordinated reaction against the Gülen community. Erdoğan has no intention in leaving politics and Davutoğlu is welcoming this.