“I would like to announce here that we will continue to defend democracy and the rule of law against those who encroach upon the nation's will. … Governments come to power and step down via elections in democracies. There cannot be a power above the nation's will. Those who see themselves as superior to Parliament and think they have such authority are in great error. If you think that you are in power today, don't forget that you can lose it tomorrow.
Think of how you will appear in the eyes of the public when this power ends. This is valid for all of us,” Erdoğan said at his AK Party’s provincial chairmen meeting, held at AK Party headquarters yesterday.
Erdoğan’s remarks came as a response to an alleged military plot, dubbed “Sledgehammer.” The Taraf daily claimed on Wednesday that the coup plan -- a nearly 5,000-page document -- was formulated at a military meeting attended by 162 active duty TSK members, including 29 generals. According to the plan, the military was to systematically foment chaos in society through violent acts that would lead to a military takeover.
During his speech Erdoğan stressed his party’s commitment to democracy and its consistent fight against illegal formations. “We have never entered Ankara’s dark tunnels, and we won’t. Some are trying to take us to these tunnels and make us a part of dirty scenarios that are of no use to the nation. We haven’t succumbed to such dirty scenarios, dirty games and illegal attempts thus far, nor will we,” he noted.
Erdoğan also responded at the meeting to recent claims that the country is moving toward a civilian dictatorship under his party’s rule. “They have been singing the same refrain for weeks. They are saying ‘civilian dictatorship,’ they are saying ‘civilian fascism’ and ‘single party dictatorship’. Then I ask, why did these claims emerge? Why did you need them? Why is the campaign that was launched against [former prime minister] Adnan Menderes and [former president] Turgut Özal now being repeated again? I scanned the archives and found that the same criticism was directed at Özal as well. The headlines of dailies’ top stories were the same. What kind of a plan are you trying to implement again?” asked the prime minister.
Stressing that his party bears responsibility for all 72 million people in the country rather than merely that of their voters, he warned his opponents not to instill fear among the public. “Nobody should attempt to earn political gain by creating artificial fears and spreading unease among the public. For God’s sake, I am asking, parliamentary elections were being held every five years. If we had had such a concern, would we have decreased it to four?” he complained.
