Numan Kurtulmuş reacts to the reading of the Can Atalay ruling: 'I will exercise my authority'

Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) Numan Kurtulmuş reacted to the reading of the Can Atalay ruling in the TBMM, stating, "I condemn Deputy Speaker Karaca and Clerk Member Suiçmez, and I declare that I will exercise my powers derived from the Constitution and the Rules of Procedure against them."

Numan Kurtulmuş included the following statements in his press release:

"In the Advisory Board meeting held before the opening of the 77th Session of the General Assembly on April 16, 2025, it was decided that, due to the health condition of TBMM Deputy Speaker Sırrı Süreyya Önder, only the group deputy chairs would convey get-well wishes in the General Assembly today and that the General Assembly would not continue its work thereafter; furthermore, a proposal by the Advisory Board was signed by the unanimous consent of all political party groups to the effect that the General Assembly would not convene on April 17, 2025.

IT IS LEGALLY NULL AND VOID

Representatives of the political parties who took the floor in the General Assembly offered their get-well wishes to TBMM Deputy Speaker Sırrı Süreyya Önder. Despite this common will formed in the Advisory Board, at the end of the session, TBMM Deputy Speaker Gülizar Biçer Karaca, contrary to the Constitution, the Rules of Procedure, and parliamentary customs, had Clerk Member Sibel Suiçmez read the operative part of the Constitutional Court's ruling regarding Can Atalay. TBMM Deputy Speaker Gülizar Biçer Karaca having a clerk member read a text contrary to the Constitution, the Rules of Procedure, and customs is both an abuse of authority and legally null and void.

THE TBMM SPEAKER DETERMINES THE BUSINESS TO BE ADDED TO THE AGENDA

In the session where get-well messages were conveyed to TBMM Deputy Speaker Sırrı Süreyya Önder by all political parties, the TBMM was subjected to an unlawful practice through behavior that does not fit with customs or political courtesy. This behavior is also a sign of disrespect toward the person of TBMM Deputy Speaker Sırrı Süreyya Önder. Furthermore, according to Article 15 of the Rules of Procedure, TBMM Deputy Speakers preside over General Assembly sessions on behalf of the TBMM Speaker. The TBMM Speaker determines which sessions and meetings the deputy speakers will preside over, what will be included in the 'Presentations of the Presidency to the General Assembly' section of the agenda, and the business to be added to the agenda.

I WILL EXERCISE MY POWERS

No TBMM Deputy Speaker may exercise the powers of the office they represent against the will of the TBMM Speaker. Any matter not determined by the TBMM Speaker cannot be brought to the General Assembly agenda. As the Speaker of the TBMM, in order to protect the dignity of the Supreme Assembly, I condemn TBMM Deputy Speaker Gülizar Biçer Karaca and Clerk Member Sibel Suiçmez, who abused their duties with these actions that are legally null and void, and I declare that I will exercise my powers derived from the Constitution and the Rules of Procedure against them."

News Source: 12punto