CHP dissidents argue ‘enough support garnered for convention’
ANKARA
Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) lawmaker Yaşar Tüzün said the number of CHP delegates who have signed to bring the party to extraordinary congress have exceeded the sufficient number of signatures to challenge CHP chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu’s leadership by defeated presidential candidate Muharrem İnce.
“As of now, enough signatures have been collected for an extraordinary congress. We will continue to collect signatures until 5:00 p.m. on Monday [July 30], which is the official deadline for collecting signatures,” Bilecik lawmaker Tüzün posted on his official Twitter account on late July 24.
Following the June 24 parliamentary elections, where the social democrat party received 22 percent of the votes and the CHP’s presidential candidate Muharrem İnce received 33 percent, some CHP members have called for a change in the party administration, supporting İnce to take the leadership seat.
CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and the party administration opposed calls stating the top party bodies would call for an extraordinary congress for a leadership change. They criticized the dissidents arguing that the opposition party’s primary concern should be upcoming local elections, which would be held in March 2019 and in-house discussions over leadership change harms the preparation process.
Dissidents have begun collecting signatures to bring the party to the congress, as the party’s by-laws require signatures of at least over half of the whole party of delegates to convey the congress.
Tüzün said the number of signatures exceeded 634, which is over half of the 1,200 delegates.
Kılıçdaroğlu to change A-team
CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu hinted there would be a reshuffle in the party’s executive bodies.
“There will be serious changes in the party in the new period,” he said, following his party’s parliamentary group meeting.
“We have given all kinds of struggles to bring democracy to this country. We continue to do so. For this reason, there will be changes. No one should question that,” he said.
