One of the most striking scenes from Quentin Tarantino’s “Reservoir Dogs” is this: Three characters point guns at each other. No one can make the first move because everyone is vulnerable to each other. This is referred to as a “Mexican standoff.”
On the day that CHP leader รzgรผr รzel (candidate for the Union of Municipalities of Turkey) spoke with IYI Party leader Mรผsavat Derviลoฤlu over the phone, Meral Akลener went to the Palace. The Palace announced this with great fanfare. Fahrettin Altun first provided the details of the meeting’s time and place, followed by the release of two photographs heralding the meeting.
Akลener, who has been managing her relations with the Palace behind closed doors for some time, is now officially in alliance. What does her hair color matter to anyone!
On the same day, the leak of Erdoฤan’s meeting with Abdullah Gรผl was also very telling. Remember, in 2018 Akลener blocked Gรผlโs candidacy for president, exposing Kemal Kฤฑlฤฑรงdaroฤlu and Temel Karamollaoฤlu, who had wanted to pit Gรผl against Erdoฤan.
Aytun รฤฑray, a founder of the IYI Party, claimed that a promise of an ambassadorship was made to a member of Akลenerโs family. It could be true, but the issue isn’t about the position itself.
After Erdoฤan’s defeat on March 31, he needed time. Similar to the exploratory coalition talks in 2015, CHP leader รzel scheduled meetings to gain this time, and now Erdoฤan is setting up a new game. Some argue that Erdoฤan is “a puppet of the backstage game-setters.” Regardless of whether there’s someone pulling the strings behind the scenes, itโs clear that a game is being played.
Aytun รฤฑray reported that Akลener, who dissolved the Six-Party Table on March 3, 2023, said, “I have done my final duty to my state!” This claim has been repeated on all the screens she has appeared on and has not been denied.
As the local elections approach, Akลener’s situation has deteriorated, and she couldn’t hold back tears during one of her last group meetings in the parliament.
She then left the party leadership to a caretaker and took a break. However, no one expected her to return so soon. She transferred the party leadership on May 1, Wednesday, and returned to the field five weeks later on another Wednesday.
You might say, “This is a courtesy visit. Akลener will return home again. Watch and see, she wonโt appear much in public.”
That’s not quite how things work in Ankara.
Akลener could have met with Erdoฤan without anyone knowing. That wasnโt the case. This is political engineering. By visiting the Palace, Akลener has aligned with the center of state power transfer and updated her role as the sole center of attraction in the IYI Party with Erdoฤanโs assistance.
The party base is against Erdoฤan. In this context, a role like “vice president” could backfire. She gained 43 deputies on May 14, 2023, but that number dropped to 36 within a year. Akลener may be considering how to stop the bleeding within the party rather than openly siding with the Palace.
Meanwhile, Ekrem ฤฐmamoฤlu, now holding an office in Ankara as the head of the Union of Municipalities of Turkey, can travel across Turkey without heeding attacks, wearing this hat. No one can say, “What does the mayor of Istanbul have to do in Diyarbakฤฑr!”
The tension with MHP over the Ayhan Bora Kaplan and Sinan Ateล cases seems to be on ‘pause’ for now. The operation to appoint trustees to DEM Party municipalities started before the delayed local elections in Northern Syria (Rojava).
Tayyip Erdoฤan stated, “Hakkari was the first step. The law has done what’s necessary. And it will continue to do so,” indicating more to come.
Following the election, the CHP’s tepid response to the usurpation of national will in Hakkari should be noted.
Ekrem ฤฐmamoฤlu did not hide his discomfort but spoke more cautiously than before: “I think this really harms local democracy, from knowing how people cling to their votes while voting, it seems to have severed its ties with democracy.”
A “Mexican standoff” is taking place in Ankara, where everyone has drawn their guns. If the guns go off, everyone could fall; if not, the tense situation will continue.
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