Presidency reinstates secretary-general office

ANKARA

The presidential office has reverted to the secretary-general system, which was once a pivotal administrative unit in the parliamentary system.

According to the decree published in the Official Gazette, the long-absent secretary-general office has been reinstated, replacing the Directorate of Administrative Affairs, which has now been abolished.

Following the transition to the new governance system after the 2018 general elections, the Directorate of Administrative Affairs was established in the wake of the dissolution of the Prime Ministry’s secretary-general office and the presidential general secretariat.

The head of the Directorate of Administrative Affairs bore the title of "the highest state official" in Türkiye. The inaugural director was Metin Kıratlı, a former deputy secretary-general of the presidency, who now serves as a member of the Constitutional Court. Currently, the position is held by Hakkı Susmaz.

The office of the prime minister was dissolved following the constitutional amendment of 2017, which heralded the shift to the presidential system, consolidating executive authority to the president. This transformation was fully realized with the elections on June 24, 2018.