Opposition decries ’coup’ after Erdoğan’s regime change remarks

CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu (L) says Erdoğan admits having staged a coup while MHP's Devlet Bahçeli vows not to allow emergence of "Turkish Hitlers."

August 16, 2015, Sunday/ 16:14:02/ SELİM KUVEL/ ASLIHAN AYDIN/ / ANKARA

Remarks made by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan that the government system has been de facto changed has shaken the Turkish politics, with opposition leaders calling Erdoğan's words a “coup” and a confirmation that he will no longer obey the law or the Constitution.

Responding to critics who accuse him of violating his constitutional limits, Erdoğan had said he was elected by the nation and is determined to use his authorities “to the end.”

"You can either accept it or not. Turkey's government system has been de facto changed in this regard. What should be done now is to finalize the legal framework of this de facto situation with a new Constitution," Erdoğan said during a meeting with local civil society organizations in his hometown of Rize on Friday night.

Opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli later lashed out at Erdoğan for his words. “If the administrative system of our state remains in one person's hands, then woe unto us! We cannot endure a domestically produced [Adolf] Hitler, [Joseph] Stalin or [Muammar] Qaddafi. Let it be known,” Bahçeli wrote on his Twitter account on Saturday evening.

In a successive tweet, Bahçeli also said the administrative system of Turkey does not change with the words of one person, adding: “What on earth is this? Has been there a war or coup that we missed? The legitimacy of the administrative system is based on national will and the Constitution. Has the constitutional order collapsed without our knowledge?”

“Turkey is bigger than one particular person,” Bahçeli added, saying anyone with a desire for a dictatorship should not underestimate the nation and that the nation's conscience would punish Erdoğan for his inappropriate deeds.

Kılıçdaroğlu: Erdoğan confessed to staging coup

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, speaking to the Hürriyet daily, called Erdoğan's remarks of the so-called system change a “coup,” further likening Erdoğan to Kenan Evren, the leader of the 1980 military coup.

Adding that this process that the country is undergoing is a very dangerous one, Kılıçdaroğlu said this is similar to Evren's coup period, noting: “He [Erdoğan] says he no longer obeys the law and the Constitution. This is a very serious process.”

Kılıçdaroğlu said: “Erdoğan confessed to staging a coup during his speech in Rize on Saturday, also confessing that he is seeking to establish the legal basis for his coup. He says he wants to do this by changing the Constitution. The major feature of a coup maker is that they stage a coup and then try to establish the legal basis for their coups. Now, Erdoğan says ‘I staged this coup. It is now time to construct its legal basis.' There is still a Constitution. There has been no change. Everyone has to obey the Constitution. However, the president says the Constitution has been changed virtually. The person saying this is the one who swore on his honor and his life that he would be loyal to the Constitution [in his presidential oath].”

The CHP leader also said he is disappointed that no one from the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) has yet responded to Erdoğan's coup remarks. “As a political movement that once complained about the Sept. 12, the Feb. 28 and the March 12 coups, it is very upsetting that the AK Party is now remaining silent to Erdoğan's words. This means it accepts his words. Thus, it is now obligatory to question the AK Party in terms of democracy. The nation must also protect democracy, human rights and freedoms and the supremacy of law in the country.”

CHP Deputy Chairman Sezgin Tanrıkulu called Erdoğan's remarks a “virtual coup,” pointing out that Erdoğan is trying to say he does not obey the Constitution but that the Constitution must obey him. “With those words, Erdoğan has violated the Constitution once again and has also acknowledged that he will continue to violate it.”

Pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Mersin deputy Dengir Mir Fırat, speaking to Today's Zaman, harshly criticized Erdoğan, noting: “There has been no regime change in Turkey. There is no change at all. Those who are making Erdoğan say those words are not aware of the law and constitutional law. Maybe they are reading impaired. Article 82 of the Constitution is still there. The authorities of the president are still there,” adding “The current president is disregarding the law.”

Tan: If Erdoğan can say this, Turkey nothing more than banana republic

HDP Diyarbakır deputy Altan Tan said if anyone sitting in the presidential seat can say the administrative system of the country has been changed, it means Turkey is nothing more than a “banana republic,” adding that Turkey will demonstrate whether it is really a banana republic in the possible snap election. “We will see how the public responds to those words, whether they will accept them or not.”

MHP Deputy Chairman Atilla Kaya also told Today's Zaman the president's speech has clearly demonstrated that Turkey's biggest problem is Erdoğan, adding that his recent remarks show he does not recognize the Constitution. Kaya expressed concern over Erdoğan's remarks, noting that such remarks may drag Turkey into an atmosphere of chaos and anarchy.

Former Culture and Tourism Minister Ertuğrul Günay also reacted to Erdoğan's controversial words on his Twitter account on Saturday evening, saying the fact that Erdoğan was the first president elected by popular vote does not mean he can decide on a regime chance. Stating that Turkey has to be administered by common sense, reason and knowledge instead of personal desires, anger and obstinacy, Günay pointed out that the presidents of 15 countries in Europe are elected by public vote and that all of those 15 countries have a parliamentary system and not the presidential system that Erdoğan desires.

Erdoğan supports the formation of a “Turkish-style” presidential system -- a strong unicameral system rather than bicameral one that he claims will help the country's development by eliminating "multi-headedness" in state governance and thus pave the way for a more effective decision-making system.

* Habib Güler contributed to this news report.

Keywords: Recep Tayyip Erdoğan , Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu , Devlet Bahçeli , presidential system , Rize