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Erdogan, AKP
leader
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Additional
reporting by Saad Abdul Majid, IOL Turkey Correspondent
ANKARA,
November 15 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Recep Tayyip Erdogan,
leader of the Justice and Development Party (AKP), poised to form
Turkey's new government, said Friday, November 15, he submitted
"proposals" for the premier post to President Ahmet Necdet
Sezer, who promised to make a quick choice.
"The
President said he would make an appointment in the shortest possible
time," Erdogan, who himself is legally barred from becoming head
of government, told reporters after meeting with President Sezer.
The
constitution empowers Sezer to appoint a prime minister from among
parliament members, generally the leader of the largest party in
parliament.
Charismatic
Erdogan was barred from standing in the election due to a 1998
conviction for sedition after reciting a poem with Islamic undertones
at a political rally, and cannot now be named prime minister.
Erdogan,
whose party took 363 of the 550-seat parliament, was due to meet later
in the day with the head of Turkey's powerful armed forces, General
Hilmi Ozkok.
Erdogan's
closest aide, Abdullah Gul, an AKP party deputy chairman, is seen as
the strongest contender for the premiership.
The
AKP, a conservative movement with Islamic roots, won a sweeping
victory in the November 3 early elections and will be able to form
Turkey's first one-party government in more than a decade.
Many
view the party with suspicion because Erdogan and other senior AKP
members belonged to successive Islamic parties, banned in 1998 and
2001 for activities deemed contrary to the strictly secular system of
this predominantly Muslim nation.
Both
Erdogan and Gul were members of the Welfare Party of Turkey's first
Islamic Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan, whom the military forced to
step down in 1997 after just one year in office.
The
army has pledged to respect the AKP's poll victory.
Turkey's
parliament met for the first time Thursday, November 14, since the
landslide election win by the AKP, the first in more than a decade to
command a clear majority in the 550-member house.
"The
world is watching us because we are going through a big test of
democracy," said temporary speaker Sukru Elekdag before
parliament began swearing in the MPs - 500 of whom are newcomers.
The
eyes of Turkey's Western allies are on the AKP, now putting the
finishing touches to its proposed government.
Elekdag,
a member of the opposition secular People's Republican Party (CHP),
voiced hope that deputies would stay true to the secular order
established by the father of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, and
uphold its Western-oriented course.
"For
Turkey to pass this test, it is vital for the two parties in
parliament, even though they are political rivals, to help protect the
secular and democratic republic and cooperate on national
objectives," said Elekdag.
"This
would not only open the way for stability and welfare, but also make
the country a role-model and the only example of a state system which
brings together Islam and modern political ideals," he added.
The
new parliament is made up of only two parties - a first since 1948 -
as all but the AKP and the CHP failed to win 10 percent of the vote,
the minimum required to obtain parliamentary representation.
However,
despite its commanding grip on parliament, the AKP does not have the
two-thirds majority required to amend the constitution without a
referendum - a measure that could enable Erdogan at some stage to
become prime minister.
"I
believe the President will hand out the mandate to form the government
at the weekend and the government will be set up next week,"
Bulent Arinc, one of 12 AKP deputy chairmen, told NTV television.
"In
that way, the government could obtain a vote of confidence by November
20 at the latest," he added.
In
addition to the AKP and the staunchly secular CHP which holds 178
seats, there are nine independent MPs in parliament, including Fadil
Akgunduz, wanted for the past two years on charges of tax evasion and
fraud, but who was able to return to the country after winning a seat
and parliamentary immunity.
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