Resignations make Erdogan’s political future uncertain

Asmaa al-Batakoshi

Rifts have started appearing within the Turkish ruling Justice and Development Party because of the policies of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

A member of parliament for the northwestern city of Bursa has recently resigned from the party and joined former prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu who works to found a new political party.

The party member said he would join the new party that is expected to be declared by Davutoglu before the end of this year.

Today’s foes were yesterday’s friends

The Justice and Development Party has recently been rocked by a series of resignations, including this of Davutoglu. Former prime minister Ali Babacan also submitted his resignation from the party. He was then followed by Abdullah Gul, the former Turkish president.

The three politicians are old comrades of Erdogan. They have decided to found a new rival political party. The new party will compete against Erdogan’s party in the 2023 elections.

Erdogan’s unwavering control of the ruling party and of Turkey is one of the reasons why party members are submitting their resignations in droves. This control even increased after the April 2017 constitutional referendum which changed Turkey’s political system into a republican one from a parliamentary one.

Erdogan is also at the center of terrorism sponsorship accusations by a large number of Arab states, including Egypt and Libya. The Turkish national currency, the lira, is also collapsing and making continual value losses against the US dollar.

The same resignations are viewed as the first step on the road of Erdogan’s downfall. The new party is expected to contain some new political figures.

Rifts have been increasing inside the ruling party since the June 23 defeat in the mayoral elections, especially in Turkish capital Istanbul. Around 60,000 party members have quit it, according to Turkish media.

Alternatives

Turkish affairs specialist Mohamed Hamed said the resignations amounted to a painful blow to the ruling party.

“An economic crisis is also hitting hard in Turkey,” Hamed told The Reference.

He added that all these factors have their negative impacts on the political life in Turkey as a whole.

“This forces Turkish citizens to search for alternatives,” Hamed said. “The results of the latest mayoral elections show this very clearly.”