TURKEY tr-politics

Kılıçdaroğlu accuses Turkish PM of betraying country

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News | 7/26/2010 12:00:00 AM |

Turkey’s prime minister and his government have not kept their promises and have betrayed the country, Republican People’s Party, or CHP, leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu said Monday.

Speaking to the crowd during a rally in the Black Sea province of Ordu, Kılıçdaroğlu said, “Give us the authority and we will call to account [Prime Minister] Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his supporters who have exploited the country.”

Stating that hazelnuts, the driving force of Ordu’s economy, are Turkey’s national product, Kılıçdaroğlu said the Justice and Development Party, or AKP, was providing the product to international monopolies at a cheaper cost to make a profit.

[HH] Dubai agreement

Referring to a previous speech where Erdoğan accused Kılıçdaroğlu of betrayal, Kılıçdaroğlu said, “Seeing that you brought up betrayal, you should first answer whether or not you betrayed the country.”

“Maybe his memory is insufficient,” said Kılıçdaroğlu. “I would like to remind him – did [Deputy Prime Minister] Ali Babacan betray the country or not, with his signature in Dubai? Is he not your minister? You try to market your country for a million dollars, then you talk about betrayal.”

Media reports had claimed that a secret agreement between the United States and the AKP was signed in Dubai in 2003. According to allegations, Turkey received a billion-dollar credit upon agreeing not to enter Northern Iraq.

“You betrayed the country. If you’re not afraid, then reveal the documents of betrayal. Why are you hiding the Dubai agreement?” asked the party leader, revealing that he asked Babacan whether or not the prime minister was informed of the agreement or not.

According to Kılıçdaroğlu, Babacan responded, saying: “We signed that agreement. The government knows.”

The party leader went on to criticize the government for hiding it.

“Erdoğan has accused us of lying. If he tells me the time and place of the lie, I will accept it,” Kılıçdaroğlu said. “They have betrayed the country. Give us the authority, and we will take those who have betrayed the country to the High Court. Erdoğan, we take it as your duty to tell us the truth.”

[HH] ‘How can you lie so much?’

An angry Kılıçdaroğlu rebutted Erdoğan’s accusations of betrayal with what he termed evidence of conflicting statements from Erdoğan.

According to Kılıçdaroğlu, Erdoğan promised to remove parliamentary immunity for deputies in speeches in Amasya on Oct. 1, 2002, in Mersin on Oct. 20, 2002, and on television on Oct. 25, 2002.

On Nov. 24, 2002, Erdoğan took a step back, saying immunity would not be on the agenda for another year.

“What do you call a man who doesn’t stand behind his words? How can a person lie so much?” asked Kılıçdaroğlu, who challenged the prime minister to look up news reports from the dates given to confirm the claims and criticized the constitutional amendments for not including changes to the diplomatic immunity clause.

The prime minister has turned his back on the people, said Kılıçdaroğlu: “He lives in a house with a pool and a helicopter pad. He sends his wife to a wedding in Qatar on the government’s plane. He is no longer one of the people.”

The party leader continued to say that a “no” vote on the referendum would protect the beliefs and morals of all citizens.