The Nationalist Movement Party's (MHP) leader late Thursday invited dissatisfied members of the Good Party (İP) to leave their party and join the MHP.
Posting a Twitter message from his personal account, MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli underlined that the MHP is one of the most deep-rooted political institutions in the country with its long history of more than 50 years and invited İP members with ideologies similar to the MHP to join them to fulfill their historical responsibilities. MHP Deputy Chairman Semih Yalçın also released a written statement Friday, commenting on Bahçeli's call and said: "The acceptance of this invitation is a historical, conscientious and ethical responsibility. Those who do not heed this [call] will be judged by history, the nation and politics."
The İP is an offshoot of the nationalist MHP formed when a group of party members split from the party due to Bahçeli's cooperation with the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party). Having failed to dislodge Bahçeli in a heated judicial process, MHP dissidents left the party in 2016 and established Meral Akşener's leadership in October 2017. Akşener first created a splinter movement within the party, then quit and formed her own. Much like its parent party, the İP had a nationalist stance, yet drifted away from its initial raison d'être by cooperating with the left-secular main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP).
The İP has its fourth extraordinary party meeting this weekend. Bahçeli's call was interpreted as an invitation for those who are uncomfortable with the party's drift from its ideological origins. Bahçeli stressed that "those who are physically there, but ideologically here" should join the MHP's integration and unification initiative to further strengthen Turkey and carry their political philosophy to the next generations. The İP has been on the rocks for some time after failure in the June 24 elections in 2018 and the party organization's discomfort over the alliance with the CHP. Local party organizations protested their administration for not consulting them for the alliance negotiations concerning their provinces. Some of them resigned from their posts in protest of the administration.
