Speaking on Tuesday at a Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) parliamentary group meeting, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu hailed the recent meetings with opposition party leaders as paving the way to the normalization of politics in Turkey, calling on leaders to step out of cyclical conditions and exert efforts for drafting a new constitution.
"I stressed [in the meetings] that my visits are aimed at kicking off a new tradition, irrespective of the agenda. I offer them my gratitude once again for their positive approach," Davutoğlu said about Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Chairman Devlet Bahçeli.
Explaining that the government reached a consensus on three main points with the CHP and the MHP, Davutoğlu still urged Kılıçdaroğlu and Bahçeli to "get everything off their chests" regarding the AK Party's proposal of changing from the current parliamentary to a presidential system. Both the CHP and MHP refused to discuss a shift to a presidential system in advance. Davutoğlu said that the AK Party is ready to debate a presidential system openheartedly, keeping in mind the problems of the current parliamentary system. "I said [to opposition party leaders]: ‘Come and step out of cyclical conditions.' … Let's draft a constitution that our grandchildren, their grandchildren and maybe their grandchildren as well will be proud of for centuries to come," Davutoğlu said.
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