Parliament speaker Yıldırım’s mayoral nomination against constitution: Bar association
ANKARA
The Ankara Bar Association has called for Binali Yıldırım’s resignation as parliamentary speaker over his candidacy to run for mayor of Istanbul, saying his nomination breaches the constitution as it obligates the speaker of the Turkish Parliament to remain impartial.
“Article 94 of the Turkish constitution stipulates that the parliament speaker cannot partake in the activities of the political party that he is a member of. Mr. Parliamentary Speaker’s nomination for Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality evidently violates the constitution,” the association said in a written statement on Jan. 2.
The association stressed the liability of the parliamentary speaker to remain neutral.
Running in the local elections against other political parties will damage objectivity, the Ankara Bar Association stressed.
“We urge Mr. Parliamentary Speaker to resign and eliminate the contradiction to law for our democracy to function correctly,” it said.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had announced Yıldırım as the mayoral candidate for Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality at a ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) rally in Istanbul on Dec. 29, 2018.
As expected, Yıldırım, also the country’s former and last prime minister, would run on the AKP’s ticket, Erdoğan had said at the ceremony, stressing that his party picked a heavyweight for Istanbul to show the importance of the post.
“I owe more service to this city. We will work hard and we will succeed together,” Yıldırım said in the speech at the same event.
