CHP uneasy about Kılıçdaroğlu's presidential system remarks

Leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has recently stated that he is ready to welcome the presidential system that the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) is planning to bring into being if it is similar to the U.S. presidential system.

Kılıçdaroğlu, giving the green light to that type of presidential system, said: "If you are going to bring a presidential system as in the U.S., then come in and bring it. But he [President Erdoğan] does not want to do that. There are laws, governments, local administrations," in a televised interview on Wednesday.

Kılıçdaroğlu's statements met with a variety of reactions from the party. CHP Deputy Chair Bülent Tezcan stated that the party had academics prepare a report, and a workshop will be held as the second step to be taken in the presidential system discussions. Tezcan stated that if research shows the presidential system to be the most democratic option, then the CHP will respect that. Still, "The world of science is on the side of a parliamentary system," he claimed.

In stronger tones, former CHP Deputy Chair Birgül Ayman Güler spoke out against a presidential system, claiming that it is not a system related to democracy but rather a result of civil war. Emphasizing that the U.S. type of presidential system is a quite divisive one, Güler said: "The US type of presidential system is not a model of checks and balances. It is mainly an example of federalism."

The CHP will hold a workshop called "Pluralistic Democracy and Parliamentary System" in Ankara on June 10. The presidential and parliamentary systems will be compared and contrasted throughout the workshop.