Ertugrul Ozkok: Baykal and the struggle for the Istanbul Municipality
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Kasım 10, 2005 11:08
On the eve of Bayram, I had a conversation with opposition CHP leader Deniz Baykal. But there was something I forget to write down from our conversation. And on the day the news started to come in that resignations were being tendered in the Istanbul Municipality, the words I had forgotten to take note of all came back to me.
Baykal, when we talked, said "I am very sure when I say this: We will take the Istanbul Municipality on the next elections."
Baykal believes that in the next round of elections, the Istanbul Municipality will be the soft and vulnerable belly of the ruling AKP Party. The subjects that the CHP will use are already clear: the Dubai towers, the Goztepe mosque, the third Bosphorus bridge....
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Two nights ago, I spoke with Istanbul Mayor Kadir Topbas, who is of course from the AKP. We spoke about the clearing out operation of some of the top AKP officials in the Municipality cadre. I asked Topbas, "Did you consult the Prime Minister while carrying out this operation?" His answer was "I informed him, but didn't go into great detail."
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As for me, I don't think this is quite true. I think Kadir Topbas at the very least gave information, but most likely there was more interference from Ankara than he is saying. Because Idris Gulluce, whose resignation he asked for last week, would not be that easy of a person to get rid of. He had been the very successful Mayor of Tuzla beforehand. He is one of the few intellectuals in the AKP. I know he reads a lot, and that he follows world events closely. I wish he and Topbas had been able to work together. It would have been good for Istanbul. But I guess Topbas did what was best for him.
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The struggles occurring around the municipality show this clearly: that the war for Istanbul has already begun. In the upcoming period, the CHP will shift all of its focus and energy onto taking this city. Topbas' name will be muddied. And failures in Istanbul will be portrayed as the "beginning of the end" for the AKP. But in order to enter this struggle, the CHP will have to develop a new "behavior model." They will have to find a strong candidate. And they will have to break old habits to find that candidate. Don't think that this will be any too easy either.....
Baykal believes that in the next round of elections, the Istanbul Municipality will be the soft and vulnerable belly of the ruling AKP Party. The subjects that the CHP will use are already clear: the Dubai towers, the Goztepe mosque, the third Bosphorus bridge....
*****
Two nights ago, I spoke with Istanbul Mayor Kadir Topbas, who is of course from the AKP. We spoke about the clearing out operation of some of the top AKP officials in the Municipality cadre. I asked Topbas, "Did you consult the Prime Minister while carrying out this operation?" His answer was "I informed him, but didn't go into great detail."
*****
As for me, I don't think this is quite true. I think Kadir Topbas at the very least gave information, but most likely there was more interference from Ankara than he is saying. Because Idris Gulluce, whose resignation he asked for last week, would not be that easy of a person to get rid of. He had been the very successful Mayor of Tuzla beforehand. He is one of the few intellectuals in the AKP. I know he reads a lot, and that he follows world events closely. I wish he and Topbas had been able to work together. It would have been good for Istanbul. But I guess Topbas did what was best for him.
*****
The struggles occurring around the municipality show this clearly: that the war for Istanbul has already begun. In the upcoming period, the CHP will shift all of its focus and energy onto taking this city. Topbas' name will be muddied. And failures in Istanbul will be portrayed as the "beginning of the end" for the AKP. But in order to enter this struggle, the CHP will have to develop a new "behavior model." They will have to find a strong candidate. And they will have to break old habits to find that candidate. Don't think that this will be any too easy either.....