President Erdoğan: Turkish-style presidential system possible

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Friday has said that a Turkish-style presidential system can be built by picking the best features of different presidential systems in the world.

"We cannot achieve Turkey's 2023 goals without bringing down the system of tutelage" Erdoğan said, while addressing governors at the Presidential Palace in Ankara on Friday. He stated that the 2015 general elections will be a groundbreaking step to establish a democratic constitution and a presidential system. He criticized those who claim a presidential system of governance does not suit Turkey and said that it can be established by picking suitable features of different presidential systems.

"There are different presidential systems in the United States, Mexico, Cuba, Russia and France" he said, adding that Turkey may as well adopt such a system. The president also noted that a change in accordance with the socio-political and economic dynamics in the world and throughout the region will benefit everyone and it is unacceptable for the old structures of the single-party period to persist in Turkey in 2015.

Erdoğan highlighted the importance of the upcoming general elections and warned governors against provocateurs who will try to sabotage the elections through different means.

"Each governor acts as a representative of the president in their respective provinces" Erdoğan said while addressing governors at the Presidential Palace in Ankara. He urged governors to work closely with the people and "close the gap between the state and the people," while statinghe said that representation of the state is only possible through winning the hearts and minds of the people.

Erdoğan pointed out that Turkey and the region surrounding it is going through a critical period as internal conflict is devastating countries, leaving millions of people without homes. "Syria is experiencing a serious human tragedy" Erdoğan said, while he criticized Bashar al-Assad for killing over 350,000 people.

The president harshly criticized a number of politicians in Turkey who are scheduled to meet with Assad in the Syrian capital Damascus on February 28. He implied that it is unacceptable for Turkish politicians to meet with a "murderer."

" We'll continue to host the Syrian refugees in Turkey", the president said, while he urged everyone to pay special attention to the Syrians who have been victimized by the conflict in their country and terrorism carried out by the self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS)S.

"There is no difference between those who burn tombs, mosques, and schools in Syria and those doing the same in Turkey" Erdoğan said, reiterating the idea that terrorism has no religion.