I can’t see this not going through.
When it does Turk(ey)s can flush their currency down the toilet after wiping their bums with it…
Turkey’s parliament on Monday 9th Jan 2017 began debating a controversial new draft constitution aimed at expanding the powers of the presidency under Recep Tayyip Erdogan, which is expected to be put to a ‘referendum’ by the spring. The readings are expected to last 13-15 days.
President Tayyip Erdogan could govern Turkey until 2029, officials who have seen a draft of the reform told Reuters earlier this month.
The AKP needs more than 330 votes — a three fifths majority — for the bill to be submitted to a ‘referendum’ for voters’ approval.
The new constitution will replace the basic law drawn up after Turkey’s 1980 military coup. Critics have claimed the move is part of a power grab by Erdogan — Turkey’s premier from 2003-2014 and then president — for one-man rule in the wake of the failed coup in July 2016.
The new constitution is opposed by the biggest opposition party, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), whose deputy chairman Bulent Tezcan said it would restore powers “to the palace” taken away from the Ottoman Sultan a century ago.
“It will be the dissolution of all that our republic has achieved,” he said, criticising the draft as paving the way for “one man dictatorship”.
Under the proposed new constitution, the president would not have to sever links with a political party, as is the case now even though Erdogan co-founded the AKP.
It is also expected to lead to the creation of the posts of vice presidents and the abolition of the office of prime minister.
There would no longer be a formal cabinet but there will be ministers.
The president will have the power to appoint and fire ministers.
The draft law says the president would be elected for a five-year term and serve for a maximum of two mandates.
If Erdogan’s existing time as president is not counted, it would mean in theory he could stay in office until 2029, with the next elections due in 2019.
The AKP won only 258 seats but needed 276 to govern alone, 330 to call for a referendum on the presidential system and 367 for the supermajority to pass through changes without consulting the public.
Many within Turkey hoped that the AKP result would mean the end of his call for more powers but over the summer, fears of chaos overruled fears of his alleged authoritarianism among some voters.
The recent escalation in Turkey’s war with the PKK may be entwined with Erdogan’s bid for wider powers, said Nihat Ali Ozcan at the Economic Policy Research Foundation in Ankara.
“The PKK is engaged in a direct confrontation with Erdogan with the aim of preventing him from turning his office into an executive presidency,” Ozcan said. “However, Erdogan may benefit from a growing nationalist backlash in his campaign for a presidential system, as long as he maintains his crackdown on the PKK.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/turkey/11974336/Turkish-president-Recep-Tayyip-Erdogan-pushes-for-greater-powers-in-constitutional-change.html
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/turkey-begin-debating-erdogan-powers-034529578.html
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-15/erdogan-said-to-plan-april-campaign-to-expand-presidential-power
Faust For Science 3 years ago.
