The development of a new constitution, a project initiated by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, will be one of the primary focuses of the political sphere by autumn. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called for all parties to support the study and development of a new, civilian constitution. Taking the first step towards this, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) announced that they have been working on a 100-item constitution in recent months. AK Party, meanwhile, conducted a constitution study with a scientific advisory board formed within the Presidency.
A draft of a new constitution has been prepared by members of this Constitution Scientific Advisory Board, overseen by Prof. Dr. Yavuz Atar, Chief Advisor to the Presidency. The draft is now being discussed by AK Party lawyers and deputies within the party’s authorized boards. The AK Party draft will be examined alongside the draft prepared by the MHP after it is finalized.
Work on these new constitutions are expected to further accelerate when Parliament is back in session on October 1. It is expected that the constitutions prepared by the MHP and AK Party will be merged and announced to the public as a joint constitution of the People’s Alliance. The text is also expected to be submitted to opposition parties, but an agreement is not expected. Opposition parties support a return to the parliamentary system and have built their platforms upon the idea of a strengthened parliamentary system.
MHP STARTS CONSULTATION MEETINGS IN NINE CITIES
The MHP will hold regional consultation meetings in nine provinces, entitled ‘MHP Strong Politics, Turkey’s Leader, Target 2023 – New Era in the Politics: Presidential System and Strategic Objectives’. The new constitution will be on the agenda of these regional consultation meetings. MHP’s regional meetings will be held in Afyonkarahisar, Bursa, Manisa, Erzincan, Konya, Gaziantep, Amasya, Istanbul, Kayseri, and Ankara, according to Semih Yalcin, Vice Chairman of MHP.
The work of the parliament, the People’s Alliance, the presidential system, and domestic and foreign issues, including political, social, and economic development, will also be discussed at the meetings. However, preparation of the new constitution, the agreement reached by the People’s Alliance, and issues to be put on the Parliament’s agenda are the principal subjects of the meetings. “While the People’s Alliance will continue to work towards Vision 2023 and elections to be held that year, this political alliance will be maintained in line with Turkey’s broader goals spanning the 21st century,” Yalcin noted. Sustainability and permanence of the presidential system are critical to ensuring that a politically-stable Turkey can move towards its regional and global objectives, he said. “In this context, we will focus these meetings on the existing function of the presidential system, the acceleration of legislative power, and new structural regulations,” Yalcin added.