Erdogan mission to become sultan over Turkey nears completion

Quote:

Turkey’s president has approved a major constitutional reform bill granting him broad new powers under an executive presidential system, paving the way for a referendum on the bill on 16 April. The 18-article bill was passed by parliament last month without garnering the two-thirds majority needed to become law.President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s approval allows the changes to go to a referendum in the deeply polarised country, which is still under emergency law. The constitutional overhaul would allow Erdoğan to run for two more terms in office, potentially governing as a powerful executive until 2029. It is backed by the ruling Justice and Development party (AKP) and its nationalist allies in parliament. Critics of the bill say it would lead to one-man rule with few checks and balances on the president by a loyalist parliament, allowing Erdoğan to consolidate power amid a widescale purge of civil servants and a crackdown on opposition media and political parties.

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Wasting no time while Turkey is on lockdown under a state of emergency Erdogan may finally get what he wanted for so long: to openly rule Turkey effectively as an autocrat with a rubber-stamp parliament.

He's not content with being de-facto most politically powerful individual, despite only being a largely ceremonial president. He must cement his place in history as the person who tore away the facade of democracy.