Erdoğan slams opposition for defending Ergenekon terrorist organization

Erdoğan, whose party has been facing closure on charges of anti-secular activities since March, said his government would never cast a shadow on democratic politics, adding: “We are not lawyers of the mafia or a gang. Those who were greatly impressed by Italy’s clean hands operation and said that we need that too are irritated now. Why?”

Erdoğan said Turkey was drawing closer to its target of modernization and that recent developments in the country were consequences of that transformation. “Turkey is developing, growing. It will continue its development,” Erdoğan explained, adding that economic indicators were increasing and that the opposition and some civil society organizations were trying to distort these positive developments. “We are working day and night to make Turkey grow. Our exports have reached nearly $124 billion, [year on year as of June]. Our growth rate in the past five years has reached 6.7 percent. The opposition and civil society organizations want to distort this instead of trying to understand it,” he argued.

He criticized the opposition for not making constructive criticism or motivational remarks. “For God’s sake, they have not made a single recommendation that might show a better way. That’s because they have no such preparations. They don’t have any projects for the nation’s problems. They only engage in the politics of setbacks, tension and stalling.”

Erdoğan also reacted to proposals from some civil society leaders that groups and businessmen’s associations along with other political parties and the government should get together in a platform to solve the current crisis in Turkey. “There are attempts to ignore Parliament. There are those who are trying to push political parties aside despite the Constitution. This is an extraordinarily wrong way to go,” he said. Noting that deputies are elected by the people, he stressed, “This roof of Parliament has to retain its power.”