Continuation of Turkey’s ‘reconciliation atmosphere’ is key, says CHP leader

“Today an atmosphere of reconciliation and mutual listening has emerged in politics. My biggest wish is for the maintenance of this atmosphere. My second biggest wish is for the enlargement of a common ground,” said Kılıçdaroğlu, making reference to the Turkish Republic’s founding values and principles of a democratic, secular, social law state.

The CHP head’s remarks came in a live interview with private broadcaster CNN Türk on July 28, three days after he joined the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leaders in a meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the presidential palace in Ankara.

Describing the situation in the aftermath of the coup attempt in Turkey, Kılıçdaroğlu said the coup attempt was “not the result of an intelligence failure, but of a governance failure.” 

“If you do not give jobs to people who can do them, if the state is not structured healthily, if you hand over the state to groups that are against the state, and if you put them in the state’s key posts, this is called a failure of governance,” he added.

Regarding the discussion on the possible reinstatement of capital punishment, Kılıçdaroğlu said these demands have “created concern” in many environments, including the EU. He noted that the issue became particularly heated in the early aftermath of the coup attempt but is not being talked about so much today. 

“I hope the government does not put its signature to such craziness,” said the CHP leader. 

Touching upon the arrest and detention warrants issued for a number of journalists as part of the probe launched into the attempt, Kılıçdaroğlu said the hasty detention of journalist Bülent Mumay, despite him saying that he would go to testify the following morning, would overshadow the prosecution process. 
The CHP leader also touched on the call his secretary received from soldiers during the coup attempt claiming that the chief of general staff was leading the coup. 

“We responded ‘we are against the coup, whoever is carrying it out.’ It is obvious that an indirect inducement was coming to us and MHP there,” he said.