“Hundreds of police are at my door”, he said in a voice message. “This immoral and tyrannical approach will undoubtedly be overturned by the will and resilience of our people”.
Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has consistently excelled at positioning himself on the international stage, adeptly seizing opportunities left by others and turning them to his advantage. He has demonstrated this once again by orchestrating the arrest of İmamoğlu, his main political rival.
With global events bolstering his leverage over the west, Erdoğan is well placed to act with impunity, knowing that his strategic importance will likely shield him from serious repercussions.
The judiciary’s first attempt to remove İmamoğlu through legal means came in 2019, shortly after he won the Istanbul mayoral election by a narrow margin (around 13,000 votes). Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development party (AKP) contested the results, citing irregularities.
Under intense pressure from the government, the Supreme Electoral Council annulled the vote and ordered a rerun. İmamoğlu not only retained, but significantly increased his lead. He secured victory over the AKP’s candidate, Binali Yıldırım, by more than 800,000 votes.
The third attempt occurred just days ago, when the government revoked the validity of İmamoğlu’s academic degree on bureaucratic grounds. Turkey’s political future looks to be entering a new and more precarious phase.
Continues . . . .
For the full article by Massimo D'Angelo visit the Conversation.
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