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July 13, 2018 www.intellinews.com I Page 4
In full control
Erdogan’s June 24 victory, which some argue was marred by irregularities, has left the opposition crushed and in chaos. His main challenger the centre-left main opposition Republican People’s Party’s (CHP’s) presidential candidate Muharrem Ince conceded defeat on the night of the election even though he described the race as “unfair”.
Under the new regime, Erdogan can name the cab- inet, draft the budget, appoint top bureaucrats and call elections. He will be able to rule by decrees.
Erdogan has been gradually tightening his grip on power over the years and the oath-taking ceremony on July 9 only formalised Turkey’s switch to the ex- ecutive presidency that had de facto already occurred.
Before the formal transition process was com- plete, Turkey had a prime minister and a cabinet, but everybody knew who was calling all the shots.
The presidential system has formally abolished the prime minister post and transferred all the author- ity of the prime minister’s office to the president.
“As president, I swear upon my honour and integ- rity, before the great Turkish nation and history, to work with all my power to protect and exalt the glory and honour of the Republic of Turkey and fulfil the duties I have taken on with impartiality," Erdogan said at the ceremony in the parliament.
The event, however, once again displayed how tense the political climate is and how deeply po- larised the country is.
Lawmakers from Erdogan’s Justice and Develop- ment Party (AKP) and its ally Nationalist Move- ment Party (MHP) stood up, as is customary, dur- ing Erdogan’s swearing-in, while the opposition CHP, the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) and Good (IYI) Party lawmakers did not, state-run news service Anadolu reported.
CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu did not attend the ceremony in the national assembly at all.
Palace ceremony
“At the dawn of this important turning point of our republic and democracy, as the 12th presi- dent of Turkey and the first president of the new presidential governmental system, I promise to strengthen our nation’s unity and fraternity, to develop our country and to elevate our state,” Hur- riyet Daily News quotes Erdogan as saying when he visited Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Ataturk, the founder of the Republic, after the oath-taking.
A separate grandiose inauguration ceremony was held at Erdogan’s massive presidential complex in the capital Ankara’s Bestepe district with some 10,000 people invited.
Soldiers fired a 101-gun salute as he entered the presidential complex.
The ceremony at the presidential complex was over- shadowed by a train accident that killed at lest 24 people in the western province of Tekirdag. A further 300 people were injured in the deadly derailment.
Erdogan’s opponents criticised the flamboyant ceremony that went ahead despite the tragic event in Tekirdag on social media.
Merak Aksener, the leader of the newly founded centre-right, nationalist IYI Party, who challenged Er- dogan in the presidential race, called for the cancella- tion of the ceremony. Her party that formed an election alliance with the CHP sent 43 deputies to parliament.
Ince also lashed out at Erdogan on social me- dia. “You have money to build palaces, but you do not have money to repair railroads! This derailed mind-set continues to hold grandiose ceremo- nies,” Ince wrote on Twitter.
In response, the president’s office said the cer- emony was scaled down and some acts, such as fireworks and folk dances, were cancelled out of respect for those who lost their lives in the acci- dent.
The presidents of Bulgaria, Georgia, Macedonia, Moldova, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo,