He Can't Quit!

Last week he came out and said, “The local elections to be held on March 31 are a final for me.”

The agenda changed in an instant.

Was he quitting politics?

Discussions took off.

It was whipped up and whipped up on social media. It became the number one agenda item on news channels.

He had made “for the last time” statements in 2009, 2012, and 2022, but could he really be putting an end to politics this time?

Let us say it upfront: he will not quit politics, he cannot!

That threshold was crossed long ago.

After this point, he will not, cannot, just say I am leaving and retreat to his corner.

Let us try to explain as best we can.

The similar expressions he used in the past were also empty. Because he knows his voters and especially his own base very well, he knew very well that he could prevent emotional breakups with such outbursts.

Turgut Özal had applied a similar tactic and succeeded. It was a proven tactic to consolidate conservative, pious voters.

It had never failed until today; especially when said with a demeanor that would touch the heartstrings of the people of our country, everything would come to a standstill.

Stirring emotions and influencing people this way was a much more powerful propaganda tool than words that could only appeal to reason.

Moreover, he was able to apply this extremely successfully with his gestures, mimics, emphasis, intonation, and the "imam-style" tone he uses masterfully.

If he really had the intention to quit, he could have left after serving as Prime Minister for at most three terms; he could have continued to do his own version of “charity work” by heading a foundation, for example, so he wouldn't get bored in his retirement days.

But what did he do? After coming to power in 2002, he sat in the Prime Minister's chair for exactly 11 years.

The Prime Ministry wasn't enough.

In 2014, he had himself elected President.

That wasn't enough either; he changed the regime in 2017.

Everyone knows he did this to stay in power for life.

The rest is just empty talk!

Maybe the Caliphate is next, we don't know. He must be thinking that a darker-toned Islamic regime will protect him.

This is the reason why he fills every empty space he finds in politics with religiousness.

Yet, his stubbornness about his seat has brought the economy to the point of collapse.

He proceeds by saying, “As long as I don't let go of the reins, whatever happens to the country, whether it sinks or swims, it's all for me.”

His political ambition is always ahead of his reason.

He never knows when to be satisfied.

He sees himself as a “Sultan” and us as “subjects.”

He does not want his benevolence to be questioned.

Whether he complies with the Constitution or not; he makes whoever he wants a minister, fires whoever he doesn't want, curses whoever he doesn't like; every instruction is a command!

The psychopathology of this state of mind really needs explanation!

Those who know him even a little already think that he will not quit and leave, or that after satisfying the expectation threshold, he will want to “level up,” to use the fashionable term of recent times, and they are very right.

But until when? There is no end to this.

He will one day have to face the inevitable reality of human beings.

After all, we are all mortal.

We see it; his health will no longer allow for long-term politics.

It is impossible for him not to be aware of this.

Let's say he quit politics today; he is also aware that after tomorrow, it will be a deluge.

He knows very well that this corrupt, mafia-like order, woven stitch by stitch since 2002, cannot stand, that whoever replaces him, this regime he imposed on the nation will collapse, and that he will be held accountable for 22 years.

The nouveau riche political Islamist bourgeoisie, which feeds on the rottenness of the system, is also doing its best to keep him there.

If he leaves and goes, they will also have to pay the price for the corruption and theft they have committed to date. They will have to account for this world in this world.

Let us underline with a thick pen that fear is of no use against death.

In 2003, Ilham Aliyev succeeded his father Heydar Aliyev in Azerbaijan. At that time, because our understanding of democracy was not as eroded as it is today, I had made this an issue for myself. At the regular press conference, I had asked this to Presidential Spokesperson Selim Sermet Atacanlı, who is one of the kindest people I know and one of the most qualified diplomats.

Because a name with extremely high democratic sensitivity like Ahmet Necdet Sezer was sitting in the Çankaya Mansion, I thought the official approach would reflect this.

But it didn't happen that way.

Selim Sermet Atacanlı just said, “For us, the stability of Azerbaijan is important.” In other words, Turkey was preferring a regime passed from father to son in Azerbaijan over democracy.

After the meeting, I went to him and asked why he made such a statement. It was a state decision.

I didn't push it too much, but I was very surprised; I had naively thought, “If it were us, the world would turn upside down.”

In the 20 years that have passed, a lot has changed in Turkey. Unfortunately, new generations do not know what democracy is.

Those who think that he will put an end to politics and step aside after March 31 should not wait in vain.

He will continue as long as his health permits.

Does he have a preparation for after him? Not much inside information has leaked so far. There are a few names circulating, from Hakan Fidan to Selçuk Bayraktar, from Hulusi Akar to Numan Kurtulmuş, but for now, these are just rumors.

Whether he will point to someone while he is still able, or say “let it go as far as it goes”; we don't know. Time will tell.

Anyway, let's not darken our spirits too much, let's not lose our hope; let us end our article by saying that Turkey will somehow overcome this anomalous period and find its place in the contemporary world.