When I started writing on Halkweb, I made a decision for myself:
I wasn't going to write about CHP.
But as we watch the recent processes, one sometimes has to cross the boundaries one has set for oneself. Because the issue is no longer a matter of individuals, but a matter of political culture.
The CHP's current problems did not start yesterday. The cliques, power centers and local barons that have formed within the party for years have prepared the ground for today. There is no vacuum in politics; every unaccountable area turns into a power struggle after a while.
I beg your pardon:
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's choice of candidate is behind Ekrem İmamoğlu's first term success. If that political decision had not been made, the picture would be completely different today. This is not an opinion, it is a political reality.
But the issue is not just the rise of one name. The real issue is the power networks that have formed around these rising names.
The allegations that have been talked about for a long time in Istanbul, the debates over the municipalities, and the intra-party rivalries have raised serious question marks in the public opinion. But what is striking is that there has been no strong call for introspection from within the party.
If a political structure cannot openly discuss its internal problems, it cannot inspire confidence outside.
This is the picture we see today:
There are factions.
There is a power-sharing struggle.
There are file wars.
But there is no clear will to account.
I have been one of the most vocal critics of Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, but today we see more clearly that the most critical test of leadership is the choice of personnel. What makes a leader strong and what weakens a leader are the names around him.
There is a lot of talk about betrayal, loyalty and loyalty in politics. But what is really decisive is merit and control.
People don't want to watch civil strife anymore.
People “who's whose man” not the question, “who did what” and he wants the answer to his question.
There cannot be a strong democracy without a strong opposition.
But a strong opposition cannot be built without transparency and internal discipline.
The problem is not people, it is culture.
And without changing the culture, the outcome will not change.