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The prime minister's opposition initiative

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu convened with deputies yesterday.



He gave important messages that could be considered the clues of the new period.



Deputies are going to take their oath and come into office today.



Hence, the election government that was formed as a requirement of the Constitution will expire.



President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will charge the prime minister regarding the formation of the new government.



The new government is expected to be formed in no more than 48 hours.



Once the government receive the vote of confidence, Prime Minister Davutoğlu will request an appointment from opposition leaders and meet with them. Hence, Davutoğlu will have taken a major step that we can refer to as “the opposition initiative.”



Who knows if Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader “Mr. No” Devlet Bahçeli, with a habit from June 7, will say no to the prime minister's request to meet, but this approach by Davutoğlu also bears important clues in terms of the political approach in the new period.



Turkey had not been able to escape the shaky process that started with the Gezi protests in May 2013. The prime minister is making efforts to close the Gezi bracket and manage time well in four years for the short term and in the eight years leading up to 2023 in the medium term.



The Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) number of deputies is sufficient to pass on a new law, but not enough to make a constitutional change. However, Davutoğlu wants to shape this process by cooperating with the opposition. Thus he places great importance on dialogue with opposition parties.



The prime minister had given clues of the new period in the speech he made on the balcony of AK Party's headquarters on the night of Nov. 1. With the Nov. 1 elections, the AK Party achieved something never before witnessed in Turkish politics. In a trail leading from the Democrat Party (DP) the Justice Party (AP) and the Motherland Party (ANAP) to the AK Party, when mass parties that came to power alone started to lose elections, their parties would deteriorate and never achieve the same power again. The AK Party that lost on June 7 regained its power again in the election held five months later. But the new period has burdened the AK Party with critical responsibilities. The prime minister is aware of this.



A new political language is necessary for the new period.



The political language of the new period will be based on conciliation and dialogue. Our people do not want tension and polarization. In fact, as polarization threatened our inner peace, they are afraid, concerned and worried after seeing examples of the civil war in Iraq and Syria.



The period between June 7 and Nov. 1 has been somewhat a laboratory for the AK Party. The AK Party saw all the colors and fault lines in the Turkey picture. It realized what happens when these take action.



Hence, the “Economically and politically new Turkey project” is going to be the prime minister's priority in the new period.



The prime minister is going to request support during his meetings with opposition leaders under four headings:



1- He will request support for budget.


The principle committees in Parliament, primarily the Plan and Budget Committee, need to be formed right away to plan the budget for 2016. The Finance Ministry had submitted the 2016 Budget to Parliament on Oct. 16. However, as the Parliament was on election recess, the budget could not be discussed. As long as the ruling party and opposition come to agreement, the Parliament will not have to go over the same process twice, and the budget can be revised and hence the 2016 budget can be finalized in time before the new year.



2-Change in the Parliament Bylaw.


The AK Party wants to change the Parliament Bylaw. Don't think of it as the limitation of opposition's right to speak. Let opposition's right to speak increase and not decrease, but also let Parliament work quicker. Why does the AK Party feel this is necessary? It wants to enter a fast reform process in the new period and for this the Parliament needs to work fast.



So how will this be achieved? The prime minister will go to opposition parties with the offer to form a joint committee to change the Parliament Bylaw.



What kind of suggestion will the prime minister make?


1- The minimum number for meeting needs to be changed. Parliament should be able to meet with the attendance of a less number of deputies and continue its work. According to the Constitution and Parliament Bylaw, Parliament can't convene without 184 deputies and make a decision without the absolute majority. With frequent attendance calls, laws are passed with difficulty despite sessions that run through the night and into the morning.



2- Meclis (Parliament) TV should run 24 hours. No restriction should be placed on opposition's right to speak. If necessary, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday should be review days. Opposition can speak. And on Thursday and Friday the law can be passed. Opposition should speak and the ruling party can pass the law. So it's a win win situation.



3- Election promises.



All parties including the AK Party made promises to the voters on Nov. 1. The AK Party is aiming to fulfill these promises within the first three months of its term in office. The prime minister is going to ask opposition leaders which election promises they would like fulfilled first and if possible, suggest that they be passed in agreement. It will offer opposition to form a joint committee for the election promises.



4-Constitution



The prime minister is going to offer opposition leaders to form a joint committee regarding the Parliament Bylaw and promises. If this received a positive response, once both committees complete their work, he is then going to offer to form a committee for the new Constitution. If opposition refuses to form a joint committee, then the AK Party will prepare a new calendar regarding the work it can carry our alone and start working.



In the meantime, the AK Party is going to form a committee for the preparation of the new Constitution. The AK Party had previously had a commission headed by Ergun Özbudun prepare a Constitution. A separate commission had also worked for the reconciliation committee formed in Parliament. The AK Party is going to form a new Constitutional Committee in this period. It will also benefit from the legal experts within the party and academics who are constitutional lawyers. This way, both the public's Constitutional demand will be met and the AK Party's new Constitution proposal will be ready. In his balcony speech on the night of Nov. 1, Prime Minister Davutoğlu had mentioned the new Constitution. The presidential system will also be included in the AK Party's new Constitution proposal. This will leave behind discussions of whether it wants a presidential system and reveal the kind of presidential system the AK Party wants. Of course this is going to be a “Democratic Presidential System.” The distribution of power will become clear with the balance and brake system.



There is nothing more left to say, it's time to build the new Turkey...





#AKParty
#Ahmet Davutoğlu
#Turkey
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