Muharram Inge .. Will the final nail in the coffin of Ataturk's party be knocked out, or will it come to life?

It seems that the splits that afflicted the ruling party in Turkey recently have spread their enemy to the largest opposition party, the Republican People's Party, which is being severely shaken by the resignation of 3 of its representatives in Parliament, and the announcement of the party's vice president, the presidential candidate, Muharram Inge, of his approaching formation of a new party.

Political observers believe that if Inge actually announced his new party, his party - although his popularity will surpass the parties of Ahmed Davutoglu and Ali Babacan, who split from the Justice and Development Party - will increase the power of the ruling party, not the other way around.

In the last presidential election, Ince won more than 30% of the vote of the Turks, which is higher than the percentage of votes that the CHP itself gets in every election.

The President of the Republican People's Party, Kılıçdarolu, faces a real challenge from Muharram Eng, in his direction to establish a new party (Al-Jazeera)

The succession of resignations

The formation that Inge will announce in the coming period is the third to emerge from the womb of the Republican People's Party, which was founded by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in 1923.

In July 2020, a prominent Turkish politician, Yilmaz Utürk, announced the formation of the Renewal Party, and last December, a dissident leader from the Republican People, Mustafa Sarigul, announced the formation of a new party, the Change Movement.

Two days after the resignation of the three deputies, which reduced the number of CHP seats in parliament to 135, 350 members of the "Yalova" region announced their resignation from the party.

According to a statement issued by the resigned members, the party lost its "national" base, could not distance itself from terrorism, and it changed its view of Ataturk's principles.

Commenting on the resignation of the three deputies, Muharram Inge said that democracy is now non-existent in the party, indicating that he will announce his resignation very soon, and that he will establish a political structure capable of obtaining a majority (50 + 1), and that the resigned representatives will join it.

Inge revealed that the party's statute had been prepared, and that in the next stage he would announce the names of the members, pointing out that he was in contact with the resigned deputies, and that he had met with a number of personalities.

Sources told Al-Jazeera Net that the heads of the municipalities of Greater Antalya and Karklareli, which are affiliated with the CHP, are on their way to resign, and will join the National Party, which is founded by Ince.

There was no direct statement from CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdarolu about Ince's efforts to defect, but he said during a party meeting a few days ago that there were attempts to disrupt and divide his party.

The differences between Kılıçdarolu and Inge were not born of the moment, but escalated after the latter's loss in the 2018 presidential elections.

Such as Akram Imamoglu's victory in the Istanbul municipality as a boost to the People's Party, so what will be the fate of the party after the split?

(Reuters)

Turkish Press

"Hurriyet" newspaper reported that prominent figures from the CHP held a meeting with Muharram Inge, as part of their efforts to prevent his defection and prevent the party from disintegrating.

Suzcu newspaper said that Ince, who competed with Kilicdaroglu for the presidency of the CHP, is dissatisfied with the hidden cooperation existing between the CHP and the Kurdish HDP, accused of supporting the Kurdistan Workers' Party, which Ankara classifies as a "terrorist entity", and considers it responsible for several operations at home. Turkish.

Akcham newspaper pointed out that the state of rebellion against Kilicdaroglu is increasing, noting that the main reason for the internal problems and the secession movement is the departure of the party leader from his "founding principles", while prominent personalities accuse him of changing the "party axis."

"Turkey Gazeta" newspaper confirmed that the "nationalists" are leaving the CHP, and more MPs and some mayors are expected to join the Muharram Inge Party, which it intends to announce soon.

Nezavisimaya Gazeta newspaper said that Ince was a very ambitious politician.

And it considered it useful for the ruling Justice and Development Party and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan personally that the CHP is disintegrated and suffers internal conflicts, leading to the possibility of forming a new party.

Experts estimate that the split of the CHP will benefit the ruling Justice and Development Party (Anatolia)

A challenge to the opposition

From Istanbul, the researcher on Turkish affairs, Saeed al-Hajj, believes that the experience of defecting from large and ancient parties in Turkey is not encouraging, but the difference today with Muharram Inge is that he is a prominent, strong and charismatic leader, and he is from the "Ataturk" movement in the party, and many of the party's supporters see him. A leader who represents them and can compete with Erdogan.

Al-Hajj said to Al-Jazeera Net, "All these steps - including the announcement of a new party - may be negotiating papers to return Ingah to the party's leadership circles, or even to lead it later, but today is more likely to separate and establish a new party."

He added, "The new Inge Party is a challenge to the Republican people, as it will deduct from its electoral balance and its popular incubator, weaken it in front of the justice and development and in the leadership of the opposition coalition, and will pressure it regarding its relationship with the HDP, which will lose it either part of its supporters or the relationship with the HDP."

Al-Hajj stresses that it is difficult to determine the extent of the presence and strength of the new party, but it will constitute a great challenge and preoccupation for the opposition, and a gain for justice and development.