The 'glad he's gone' buzz surrounding Ali Yerlikaya! The conflict deepens

Halktv.com.tr columnist İsmail Saymaz stated that there is significant relief within the AKP following the removal of Ali Yerlikaya. Saymaz described the atmosphere of "general satisfaction" within the party with the following words:

“There is a general satisfaction in the AK Party, in a way I cannot understand. An atmosphere of ‘glad he’s gone’ has even formed.”

Following Yerlikaya's removal, it was not just Yerlikaya who was affected by this change, but also his advisor, Ergün Yolcu. Stating that Yolcu was removed from the Ministry of Communications' messaging group, Saymaz used the following expressions:

“So much so that Ali Yerlikaya's press advisor, communications professor Ergün Yolcu, was removed from the Ministry of Communications' messaging group. They removed Professor Ergün from the group.”

Furthermore, criticisms regarding Yolcu within the party also came to the fore. Saymaz added the following:

“Because while he was in office, it was always said, ‘This man is a social democrat anyway, he is not an AK Party member. He has influence over Ali Yerlikaya,’ there were criticisms like that.”

Addressing the allegations that Yolcu leaked news to the opposition press, Saymaz stated that these claims were not true:

“There is no such thing, actually. We couldn't even get news from him. We would ask for information, he would return a day later or so, sometimes he wouldn't return at all.”

Saymaz conveyed one of the harsh criticisms directed at Yerlikaya through the words of a figure he knows from the bureaucracy. This person pointed to Yerlikaya as the one responsible for the disruptions and deterioration that occurred during his tenure. He said:

“The system, which had been built over years with a world of effort and cost and was running like clockwork, was ruined in every way. The motivation of all personnel, from the Gendarmerie to the police, from the special provincial administration to the civil administrative chiefs, the coast guard, and AFAD, was reset to zero. The entire bureaucracy was affected by the ministry in this way. Those who worked quietly on the sidelines turned into monuments of arrogance.”

Following this harsh criticism, Saymaz also included the following statements:

“It is claimed that Yerlikaya ruined this entire system. It is suggested that a damage assessment report needs to be prepared.”

Saymaz also made assessments regarding the “bureaucratic tension” between the eras of Ali Yerlikaya and Süleyman Soylu. Stating that this tension continued through the cadres, he said that Yerlikaya had made criticisms directed at Süleyman Soylu and the Soylu-aligned cadres:

“Ali Yerlikaya fed off this tension a bit as well. He attacked Süleyman Soylu and his cadres. Some were suspended, some were pulled to the center, and some were neutralized. A direct hostile relationship was entered into with Süleyman Soylu.”

THE "MESSAGE" OF SOYLU'S PROTECTION VEHICLE

Recalling a move Soylu made with his protection vehicle, Saymaz added:

“Süleyman Soylu took the vehicle he had allocated for protection, left it in front of the minister, and left. Remember these.”

EXPECTATION OF A RECKONING BETWEEN YERLİKAYA AND THE BUREAUCRACY

In the new period, Ali Yerlikaya is expected to have a reckoning with the bureaucracy of the previous era. Saymaz stated that there could be tension between Yerlikaya and the old cadres, especially within the Interior Ministry bureaucracy.