Presidential system so July 15 does not happen ever again

BY: Hasan Öztürk*

They are aware the lock has opened, yet they are declaring that they will resist against that lock from opening completely by saying, “We will fight until the last drop of our blood.”If you remember, their chairman had also threatened right before the July 15 coup attempt saying, “There will be bloodshed.”

Those who turned the presidential system into a life and death issue are again uniting on the same side, like they took no lesson from July 15. Yet the current twisted system prepares the ground for coup and we must certainly change it so no more coups take place.

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The presidential system advocated by the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) since its foundation is on our agenda once again with a suggestion by MHP Chair Bahçeli along the lines of, “If you have such a problem, then let the Parliament or people solve it.”

The interesting thing is that former Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal seems to have lit the green light for the presidential system.

However, the CHP leadership and “hot-blooded” deputies’ attitude is at the “We would die before we let it pass” point. The Peoples’ Democratic Party’s (HDP) view on this issue is obvious. They are always thinking, “What’s in it for us?”

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Yet there is no way out, we are headed toward the presidential system. AK Party Chairman and Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım’s statement that the Constitution change will be asked to the people even if it receives a vote in Parliament above the referendum standard, has also shown us the road map. If this tempo continues, there will be a referendum in summer of 2017. So in such circumstances, can we not expect an attitude other than the“We would die before we let it pass” attitude from the CHP? Can it not be that CHP and HDP supporters be expecting their parties to make positive contributions to discussions on the presidential system rather than locking Parliament? Since those who saw the king of danger the country and nation faced on July 15 were not AK Party and MHP supporters alone…

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Focusing on the question, “How should the presidential system be?” should be the duty of all responsible politicians.While there are discussions on several options such as the U.S.-style presidential system or a model with a party-member president – because it is believed it will be solved a lot easier – do you not also struggle to understand the opposition’s desire to avoid supporting any of them?

Or does the opposition have the right not to make any suggestions?

Can we honestly say that the parliamentary system is operating like clockwork in its current state?

Turkey has a parliamentarian-like system that is open to all kinds of outside interventions. The established order is obvious.

Pro-tutelage soldiers who never trusted the people and their representatives used to control the system through the president and tutelage institutes such as the Constitutional Court and higher judicial bodies.

Following the referendum after the presidential crisis in 2007, the system took on a more problematic state.

The president being elected by the people made even more visible the “harmony” problem.

Just remember the tensions between the president and prime minister during the time of the 64th government.

If there is no “crisis” happening in the current situation, everybody knows this is because of the harmony between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Prime Minister Yıldırım.

So, is it possible to do a system reading based on individuals?

No.

Then fixing the current “nonsensical” situation is essential.

This is homework for Parliament. The opposition must also give the necessary support to help get Turkey out of this current nonsensical situation.

For example, it is all of our right to expect a proposal from the CHP one day in the future saying, “This is our suggestion.”

But it seems that the CHP and HDP are solely inclined to say “no” and they charge themselves with slowing down Parliament work and even blocking them. If Turkey is trying to break the ring of fire surrounding it and it is making all kinds of maneuvers to put out the fire on the inside, then it owes this to President Erdoğan who is currently taking the initiative to do so. Because the presidential system is not to make him president but the prevent Turkey from ever falling into the coup atmosphere again.

If only opposition can look at the discussion from this point, we will all win.

Isn’t that right?

*Hasan Öztürk is a Turkish columnist. He writes columns for Yeni Şafak Turkısh newspaper.
         (Published in Yeni Şafak on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016)