CHP’s local election agenda is economy and autocracy, party executive says

Turkish main opposition CHP Group Deputy Chair Gökhan Günaydın has stated that they would focus on the economic issues and the regime’s autocracy in the local election campaign, which is scheduled to be held on March 31, 2024.

Monday December 04 2023 10:55 am

Duvar English

Turkish main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) Group Deputy Chair Gökhan Günaydın on Dec. 3 stated the roadmap of his party for the local elections to be held on March 31, 2024.

Speaking after a party meeting in the southern Antalya province, Günaydın said they would focus on the economic crisis and the regime’s autocracy for his party’s local election campaign according to reporting from the ANKA News Agency.

“In the local elections, we will both keep the economic agenda very well and expose a populist, autocratic regime in Turkey where the separation of powers between the legislature, executive and judiciary has been completely eliminated,” he said.

Günaydın also said the legislative activity of the Parliament had been significantly reduced with presidential decrees and the lawmakers did not see themselves as functional political actors.

“Verbal questioning and interpellations were also eliminated. These changes rapidly dragged Turkey towards a one-man regime, and regressed the country to the lowest league in the world, not only in democracy but also in economics,” he added.

He also said the CHP was the only party taking the decision of the Court of Cassation, top appeals court, seriously in the Parliament. The Court last month refused to comply with the Constitutional Court (AYM) ruling regarding the release of jailed MP Can Atalay.

After the ruling, the CHP started not leaving the General Assembly of the Parliament to protest the court’s refusal and deemed the move "a judicial coup attempt."

“We did not leave the Parliament for more than 500 hours. Now it's time to do this in the field (for the local elections),” he said.