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| The Grand Turk | |
| Turkey’s Erdogan hails ‘historic’ referendum win as opposition claims fraud | |
| 2017-04-17 | |
| [IsraelTimes] Constitutional changes include replacing parliamentary system with presidential one, granting sweeping executive powers to president; opponents to challenge vote. Turkish President Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First ... Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him... declared victory in Sunday’s referendum that will grant sweeping powers to the presidency, hailing the result as a "historic decision." Speaking to news hounds in Istanbul, Erdogan said unofficial results showed the "yes" side had won by a margin of 1.3 million votes. The president struck a conciliatory tone, thanking all voters regardless of how they cast their ballots and describing the referendum as a "historic decision." "April 16 is the victory of all who said yes or no, of the whole 80 million, of the whole of ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... of 780,000-square kilometers," Erdogan said.
Turkey’s main opposition party vowed to challenge the results reported by Anadolu agency, saying they were skewed. Erdogan has long sought to broaden his powers, but a previous attempt failed after the governing party that he co-founded fell short of enough votes to pass the reforms without holding a referendum. Opponents argued the plan concentrate too much power in the hands of a man they allege has shown increasingly autocratic tendencies. The outcome is expected to have a huge effect on Turkey’s long-term political future and its international relations. Although the result, if officially confirmed, would fall short of the sweeping victory Erdogan had sought, but nevertheless cements his hold on the country’s governance. Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, whose position will be eliminated under the presidential system of government called for in the referendum, also welcomed the results and extended a hand to the opposition. "We are all equal citizens of the Republic of Turkey," he said. "Both the ones who said ’no’ and the ones who said ’yes’ are one and are equally valuable." "There are no losers of this referendum. Turkey won, the beloved people won," Yildirim said, adding that "a new page has opened in our democratic history with this vote. Be sure that we will use this result for our people’s welfare and peace in the best way." Erdogan supporters gathered outside the AK Party headquarters in Istanbul to celebrate, sending fireworks into the night sky. But the main opposition People’s Democratic Party, or CHP, cast doubt on the results. CHP vice chairman Erdal Aksunger said they would challenge 37 percent of the ballot boxes. "Our data indicates a manipulation in the range of 3 to 4 percent," the party said on its Twitter account. The country’s pro-Kurdish opposition party, which also opposed the constitutional changes, said it plans to object to two-thirds of the ballots. An unprecedented decision by Turkey’s Supreme Election board to accept as valid ballot papers that don’t have the official stamp also drew the ire of the CHP, with the party’s deputy chairman, Bulent Tezcan, saying the decision had left the referendum "with a serious legitimacy problem." The board made the announcement after many voters complained about being given ballot papers without the official stamp, saying ballots would be considered invalid only if proven to have been fraudulently cast. Sunday’s vote approved 18 constitutional changes that will replace Turkey’s parliamentary system of government with a presidential one, abolishing the office of the prime minister and granting sweeping executive powers to the president. The changes will come into effect with the next general election, scheduled for 2019. The reforms allow the president to appoint ministers, senior government officials and half the members of Turkey’s highest judicial body, as well as to issue decrees and declare states of emergency. They set a limit of two five-year terms for presidents and also allow the president to remain at the helm of a political party. | |
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #1 Guess they are coming out of the clost, by saying they have a dictator. |
| Posted by: chris 2017-04-17 12:29 |