Necip F. Bahadir
The younger generations might not know this, but Erdoğan’s biggest promise to Turkey was to fight against the “3Ys”: bans (yasaklar), corruption (yolsuzluk), and poverty (yoksulluk). It’s often said, “A person is tested by their claims!” and “God strikes a person down through their own claims!” In the early years of AKP’s rule, its spokespeople often repeated their promises related to the 3Ys. I still remember Bülent Arınç’s words: “We will ban the bans.” I wonder what Arınç thinks now?
Yes, much has happened since then. And today… Which of these “Ys” can the AKP claim to champion? Corruption? Back in the day, the word “siphoning” (hortum) was also used. It referred to the theft and corruption by politicians. In its early period, the AKP established a commission to fight corruption. The corruption of politicians was investigated.
Erdoğan was not pleased with the results. Those who were actively involved in the commission were not included in the candidate list for the next election. If the chairman, Azmi Ateş, were to speak out… His accounts might not be taken seriously today, but they would at least serve as a historical record. During its time in power, the AKP’s corruption far exceeded the limits of simple theft or siphoning.
Turkey is being plundered! To describe the AKP’s theft, we need new words. Otherwise, it would be an injustice to the past. For example, “plundering”… Today, there is plundering in Turkey. The state is being plundered in every aspect, like an invasion by the Mongols.
If only it were just material things being plundered. Values, principles, and even sacred concepts are also being plundered and looted… The world has rarely seen such plundering. This is the biggest plundering and looting movement in Anatolia since the Mongols. Corruption during the AKP era has reached its “golden age.” And it has advanced to plundering.
Countries with underdeveloped democracies are under the occupation of their own governments. Is there any difference between what the AKP is doing and what the Mongols did? Elections, ballots… Not enough. Hitler also came to power through elections. Assad, Sisi, and Saddam all placed ballot boxes before the people. Like Hitler, Erdoğan has shown how mistaken it is to reduce democracy to elections alone.
Anatolia is experiencing its poorest period Regarding the other Y, “poverty,” the AKP has nothing left to say. Money has concentrated in the hands of a small minority. The situation of the broad masses, whom Özal referred to as the “middle class,” is disastrous. The cost of living, inflation, and currency increases are worse than in countries at war. Russia and Ukraine, even Syria, don’t have inflation as bad as Turkey’s. Today, Anatolia is living through the poorest and most impoverished period in its history.
2024 was supposedly “the year of retirees”… It was expected that retirees would receive “positive discrimination” compared to previous years.
But, no such thing happened…
When it comes to the AKP elites, the money flows in bags, but when it comes to retirees, there’s no money! What’s there instead? A medium-term economic program. Retirees, those on fixed incomes, civil servants, and in short, the public are longing for the period before the AKP took power in 2002. The AKP, which came to power promising to “fight poverty,” has impoverished everyone but itself. To such an extent that it has even succeeded in uniting the three largest unions.
The European Spring was short-lived! And “bans”… The AKP’s biggest promise. Voters saw the AKP as the antidote to the February 28th process and gave it strong support, bringing it to power within a year of its founding. In its early years, it used the “EU process” as an excuse to raise the standards of rights and freedoms to European levels. But the European Spring was short-lived.
The policies of the last 10 years have made even the February 28th process look favorable by comparison. Mustafa Kamalak of the Saadet Party said, “The February 28th people were more honorable than you.” Abdullah Gül’s wife, Hayrunnisa Hanım, said, “We experienced worse things than February 28th.” Headscarved young women, dragged on the ground for protesting against trade with Israel, stated, “We weren’t dragged on the ground during February 28th…” Under the AKP, Turkey has fallen behind even the February 28th era.
There is much more evidence to associate the AKP with “terrorism”! I’ve said all this to comment on the recent TikTok statement by AKP’s Hüseyin Yayman. And let’s not forget the Instagram ban. Last Friday, we woke up to an “Instagram ban.”
The reason was mixed; Hamas, Palestine, Haniye, and then differences of opinion on terrorism were also added. Instagram apparently only recognizes the PKK as a terrorist organization. It objects to labeling “The Community” as such. Just because the AKP says so doesn’t make any group a “terrorist organization.” You can manipulate the police and judiciary to serve your policies, but you can’t convince the world. Today, when you measure the AKP against universal criteria, there’s much more information and documentation to link it with “terrorism” and “terrorist organizations.”
While the minister was announcing “progress” in negotiations with Instagram, a court issued a ban on Roblox, a platform mostly catering to children. It was shut down.
Before the public could even digest the “Roblox” ban, AKP Hatay MP Hüseyin Yayman made a statement about “TikTok.” And what a statement it was… Yayman isn’t just any MP. He is the Chairman of the TBMM Digital Media Commission… He has an academic background and has also written columns in the media. His remarks weren’t a communication mishap. He knew exactly what they meant and how they would be perceived by the public and the media.
Look at Yayman’s words in 2024 Turkey: “People on the street tell me, if you close TikTok, you’ll open the gates of Heaven. Unfortunately, TikTok is advocating for the devil. I don’t see these as areas of freedom.”
Shut down what you don’t like! Is this a signal flare? Is TikTok next? Is shutting down what you don’t like a solution? What ban, what shutdown has ever produced the desired result? You might not like TikTok videos, so you switch to other platforms. But what does shutting it down mean? Are internet sites and TV channels much more virtuous? What’s the difference between TikTok and the pages and screens of Sabah and ATV, which are AKP’s media organs?
Shutting down TikTok won’t open the gates of Heaven. If this were during the AK Party era, I would have thought that Yayman was placed in the party on purpose. He’s someone with many connections and relationships, someone from another world. I would have said he spoke like this to bring down the AK Party from within. The AK Party has devolved into the AKP, which is devoid of principles, morals, and sanctity. Yayman is a perfect fit for the AKP. That’s why I can’t say, “Bahçeli is doing it from the outside, and Yayman is finishing off the AKP from within.”
There’s a vast distance between Yayman and the gates of Heaven. I say this knowingly. Crime and sin are dripping from their clothes. Don’t be fooled by their attempts to appear sympathetic to AKP’s naive and fanatical base by talking about religion and Heaven. This is just rhetoric… Just words. There’s nothing beyond that.
Even looking at the actions of the past week, it’s possible to stick the “Ban-obsessed!” label on the AKP. History and fate have already done so. They’ve committed corruption, impoverished the people, and imposed bans.
In truth, the “3Ys” fit the AKP perfectly.
