Here is what Özgür Özel wants to change in the CHP
The new CHP Chairman, Özgür Özel, has begun preparations for the local elections. It has been learned that among Özel's goals is to ensure that members are involved in the process for elections at every level within the party, including the election of the chairman.
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Özgür Özel, the candidate of the change movement who won the chairmanship election against Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu at the CHP's 38th Ordinary Congress, will face his first test in the local elections on March 31, 2024.
While the idea of determining mayoral candidates and municipal council members through primary elections for the local polls is being discussed within the CHP, it is noted that primaries are possible without a party charter amendment, and that central appointment methods might be used in some provinces instead of primaries.
According to the report by Saygı Öztürk from Sözcü, some of the priorities in the work that Özgür Özel describes as the "Century of Change" are as follows:
MEMBER WILL WILL BE ESSENTIAL
1 – Along with member reform, all members will be ensured to be involved in the process through appropriate digital methods in party management.
2 – By developing methods where members have an effective say in elections at every level, overcoming the limitations brought by current legislation, the will of the member will be made the foundation of the party.
3 – The Chairman will be elected by all members.
4 – The open list system will be taken as the basis for neighborhood, district, and provincial congresses with the participation of active members.
5 – Primary elections will be the basis for determining candidates for parliament, mayor, and council membership.
6 – Candidate determination processes and the characteristics sought in candidates will be defined with objective criteria.
3-TERM LIMIT WILL BE INTRODUCED
7 – In cases where the right to central appointment granted by law is used for necessary expert staff, those who serve as members of parliament for one term within this framework will be required to enter the primary election in the next term.
8 – A 3-term limit will be introduced for party headquarters management, parliamentary membership, mayoral positions, and council memberships, and performance criteria will be defined for the next term.
9 – The representation of women, youth, and people with disabilities in party organs and candidate lists will be increased, and candidacies will be implemented using the zipper method.
10 – Management and delegations that must be determined for legal reasons will be determined by proportional representation.
11 – The number of members of the Party Assembly, the party's highest decision-making body, will be increased. The Party Assembly will be structured to have at least one representative from each province, appropriate to its size.
12 – Two-thirds of the Central Executive Board (MYK) members will be elected by the Party Assembly, and it will be essential for MYK members appointed by the Chairman to receive a vote of confidence from the Party Assembly.
13 – The Party Assembly will be operated like a real parliament and will be given absolute say in determining party policies.
14 – Democratic discussion and decision-making processes will be established to ensure that opinions are conveyed from the neighborhood to the headquarters in determining party policies.
EFFECTIVENESS OF ELECTED OFFICIALS
15 – The party management will be structured to be effective with elected officials, and consultants will be moved to their natural positions where their opinions are sought in their areas of expertise.
16 – The bond between the headquarters and provincial-district administrations will be strengthened. Provincial chairs will become actors in political processes through regular meetings. Regular regional meetings will be held with district organizations to address policy proposals and problems.
17 – Financial aid sent to our organizations by the headquarters has remained insufficient. With the deepening economic crisis, organizations are experiencing serious financial problems. Financial discipline will be ensured at the headquarters, and the share that organizations receive from the party budget will be increased.
18 – A Party Academy consisting of expert desks where Turkey's fundamental problems will be addressed will be established.
19 – The Party School will be renewed and brought to a structure suitable for developments in the field of adult education.
20 – The Ethics Committee mentioned in the party charter will be established, the "small congress" will be re-entered into the charter, and these will be made functional.