The Republican People's Party (CHP) redefined the party showcase with the 39th Ordinary Congress held on November 28-30.
Özgür Özel, who was re-elected as the chairman in the 4th congress held in the last 2 years, said that this congress was the last congress of CHP in opposition.
Since Turkey is likely to go to an election in November 2027, I think the next CHP congress will be in 2028 - barring something extraordinary.
A week before the congress, the draft party program was made public by Selin Sayek Böke.
“The program, which was announced with the slogan ”Strong Citizen, Secure Future, Winning Turkey", consists of 4 main headings.
1- Democracy, Governance and Justice
2- Development and Economy
3- Social State
4- Foreign Policy, Security and Resilience
The objective of the program is defined in the draft as follows:
“The CHP's 2025 Program aims to build a strong citizenship, a secure future and a winning Turkey. This great goal will be realized on four main axes. The first is democracy and justice for all through active citizenship. The second is equitable, just, sustainable and inclusive development that will enable the whole society to prosper together with a production-oriented and transformative approach. Third, a life of dignity, social equality and inclusion for all. Fourth, a dignified, secure, resilient and winning Turkey.”
It is impossible to disagree with the objectives of the program.
So what does the party showcase that emerged at the 39th Ordinary Congress tell us about how these goals will be achieved and with which cadres these goals will be realized?
The criticism that the CHP has ‘moved to the right’ has been going on for years. In every period, the internal opposition has accused the party leadership of the same thing. In fact, this situation is more the result of a compulsory preference stemming from a sociological necessity.
After September 12, when the left of the CHP was virtually eliminated through political and social engineering, the CHP sought to establish a bond with the mass on its right in order to reach power.
These policies started for the first time under Deniz Baykal. Let's remember the criticism from the internal opposition when women wearing chador were given CHP badges. Afterwards, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu developed a long-term relationship with right-wing voters based on building trust.
Undoubtedly, as long as this choice has been implemented, it has faced great criticism from the internal party opposition.
The results of the 2019 local elections, followed by the 2023 general and presidential elections and the 2024 local elections showed that these policies have largely yielded results.
I am not disregarding the share of reaction votes in this success, but the fact that reaction votes were directed towards CHP instead of other addresses is also a result of these policies.
But is it not possible to present a ‘left’ option to the voters since the weight of the electorate is on the right?
If more than 40 percent of voters in every survey conducted today say ’no party can solve Turkey's problems‘, shouldn't we put an alternative program in front of the public?
Or, since 1980 ‘enrichment and prosperity’ with a dream ‘impoverishment and misery’ Isn't it necessary to say strongly to the people that the neoliberal policies that produce the neoliberal policies are not the right option?
Let's take a look at the economic staff Özgür Özel included in the last Party Assembly.
In addition to Selin Sayek Böke and Yalçın Karatepe in the current FMC, the new Party Assembly includes the following names in the field of economy:
Tax expert Ozan Bingol
Economist Güldem Atabay
Former President of TÜRMOB Emre Kartaloglu
Former Future Party Kerim Rota
Member of the Executive Committee of the Presidential Candidate Office Serkan Özcan
Koç Holding Corporate Communications Director and former World Bank expert Oya Ünlü Kızıl
Undoubtedly, the balance between the headquarters and Istanbul was also taken into consideration when forming the Party Assembly. Names like Serkan Özcan and Kerim Rota reflect not only the economic program to be implemented but also this balance.
The CHP's current basic strategy is based on the idea that the impoverishment caused by the austerity policies implemented by Mehmet Şimşek will lead large segments of the population to turn to the CHP.
But is there any guarantee for this? What alternative will the economic program outlined by Serkan Özcan, who advocates support for Mehmet Şimşek's program, and Kerim Rota, who advocates privatization policies but argues that they should only be ‘transparent’, offer to the masses who are fed up with Mehmet Şimşek's policies?
If we include liberal economists like Selin Sayek Böke, Güldem Atabay and Oya Ünlü Kızıl in this camp, how effective will Yalçın Karatepe and Ozan Bingöl be in producing leftist policies?
While neoliberal policies and the international balances created after World War II are being questioned all over the world, what kind of hope will an alternative such as the implementation of reformed neoliberal policies by ‘meritocratic cadres’ or goals such as ‘full membership’ to the European Union, whose future is being discussed, give to the broad masses that the system oppresses more and more every day?
Moreover, it's not enough to write a report to NATO ‘Intervene in Iran, Turkey should support’ It is also evident how much a CHP that says "I am a CHP" understands the new world order that has started to rise on the Asia-Africa axis.
‘Is it possible for the CHP, justifiably proud of its title of ’Turkey's founding party', to forget that this foundation was the result of an antiimperialist struggle?
As much as a party's program, the choice of the cadres who will implement that program also gives clues about what will happen in a possible government.
Unfortunately, the CHP's cadre and program have once again shown that it is far from being able to offer a leftist or even social democratic option to society.