Abdulkadir Selvi explains why the AKP lost in the local elections: 'Attributing it only to retirees is not enough...'

Hürriyet columnist Abdulkadir Selvi evaluated the March 31 Local Elections, in which the AKP failed to emerge as the first party for the first time after 17 elections. 

"CANDIDATES, TONE, ARROGANCE..."

In his article, where he stated, “Attributing the results only to retirees is not enough,” Selvi continued his words as follows:

“One must also add to this elements such as economic hardships, mistakes in candidate selection, problems in the AKP's tone and political style, as well as arrogance and detachment from the public. Problems stemming from the system are a separate heading. In physics, there is the sum of vectors. As a result of these elections, the sum of errors combined and emerged from the ballot box as the election result.

WHY WAS THERE NO RAISE FOR RETIREES?

It was alleged that President and AKP Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke with Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek on the return from the Isparta rally held on March 20 about what could be done for retirees; and that Şimşek said, “We would enter an inflation spiral as in the old period, inflation would explode and reach 80 percent. We would cause great damage to the economy.”

Recalling these events, Selvi conveyed that assessments were made within the AKP such as, “If we had engaged in populism during the elections and given a flat-rate payment to retirees, the election results would not have been like this. We would have won at least 10 more provinces, but we sacrificed the party so that the Turkish economy would not be harmed.”

"THE NATION TRUSTS ERDOĞAN"

Selvi continued his words as follows:

“What is really important now is what Erdoğan will do. In stormy seas, a master captain is needed most. Master captains guide the ship through the storms and reach the port. In this process, the AKP's greatest luck is having a master captain and experienced leader like Erdoğan. Erdoğan managed to raise the AKP, whose votes had fallen in the 2009 and June 7, 2015 elections, to 49 percent. The nation loves Erdoğan and trusts him. Ten months ago, they elected Erdoğan with 52 percent. Time is once again inviting Erdoğan to exercise his leadership.”