Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu only released a video.
What did he say?
“Let's purify.”
That's all.
But suddenly there was a political earthquake in the CHP.
MPs lined up.
Provincial presidents issued statement after statement.
PM members circulated the same phrases.
Social media accounts started repeating the same slogans as if they were managed from a single center:
“Our leader Özgür Özel...”
“Fighting shoulder to shoulder...”
“No power can stop us...”
It really amazes people.
Why is there so much panic because the former chairman of a party said “let's purify”?
Because that word touched the wrong place.
“The call for ”purification" was not just a political message.
That call;
He was naming the rot that had accumulated inside the CHP since the ZOOM process.
And this is exactly the reason for the anger of those attacking Kılıçdaroğlu today.
Because if there is purification;
the convention shenanigans will be discussed.
The impact on delegates will be discussed.
Municipal relations will be discussed.
Allegations of bribery will be discussed.
There will be talk of clique wars within the party.
Purges will be discussed.
And most importantly:
It will be discussed what the structure marketed as “change” in the CHP really is.
Because now a significant part of the society sees this:
Today's CHP leadership is different,
the real center of power is different.
Özgür Özel's image is gradually moving away from that of an independent political leader.
More;
that other centers of power have brought to the fore by consensus,
the image of a transitional figure whose will is besieged.
And in politics people feel that.
Because a leader either puts his own weight,
or moves in the shadow of other weights.
The growing perception within the CHP today is this:
The political-municipal power network formed around Ekrem İmamoğlu,
has become the party's invisible second center.
From congress processes to municipal relations,
We are increasingly seeing Ozgur Ozel as more than an independent chairman,
as the political apparatus of that structure.
This is precisely where Kılıçdaroğlu's call for “let's purify” proved dangerous.
Because that call is not only to individuals,
to the new order that had been created.
And look what happened?
Suddenly everyone started taking sides.
MPs engaged in a loyalty race.
Provincial chairs issued declarations of political loyalty.
Transfer names ran to the front line.
And this is where the most exemplary episode began.
Because a significant part of those who attacked Kılıçdaroğlu the hardest today,
names that were not even in the political memory of the CHP until yesterday.
Those who were once in politics in other parties...
Names that have distanced themselves from the CHP for years...
Circles that didn't even vote for the CHP until yesterday...
Today he is trying to distribute the deed of CHP.
And one naturally asks:
When did you become a CHP member?
More importantly:
What are you defending?
Because the CHP is not just a political signboard to enter and make a career at election time.
This party has a hundred years of memory.
They have people who have paid the price.
They have lynched cadres.
There are exiles.
There are prisons.
And today you look...
While people who have carried the burden of this party for years are declared “traitors”,
Just yesterday, people who stand on different political lines came out and lectured Kılıçdaroğlu on morality.
A truly exemplary decay.
On the one hand, names that have attacked the CHP for years are today publishing a message of “our leader”...
On the other side, a chairman who has kept this party alive for 13 years against all the state power of the government is being lynched.
This is no longer a political debate.
This one;
is the drift of a party that has started to lose its memory.
And perhaps the most painful part is this:
Kılıçdaroğlu only said “let's purify”.
But some structures within the CHP responded to this call as if they were caught red-handed.
Because sometimes the biggest panic,
is a confession of the greatest fear.
“WHY WERE YOU SO ANGRY AT THE CALL TO ”PURIFY"?
One really wonders:
Why did Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's call for “let's purify” create such a big fear?
Because in a normal political party, the former chairman speaks,
criticizes,
offers suggestions,
And the party will take it with maturity.
But this is not what happened with the CHP.
Suddenly there was an organized line of defense.
It's not as if it's a call to conscience,
reaction to the revelation of the invisible order within the party.
That is why it is no longer just a matter of Özgür Özel.
Issue,
It is the new power architecture collapsing inside the CHP.
The truth that everyone in the party today feels but is afraid to say out loud is this:
Ozgur Ozel can be the chairman on the surface.
But the real political weight in the CHP has shifted elsewhere.
Because the picture that has emerged in the last period shows this:
The balance of the congress
The power moved from municipal circles...
Mediatic operations
Liquidation mechanisms
Chain of loyalty
All this gradually transformed the CHP into a new municipality-centered political structure.
And the perception that Ekrem İmamoğlu is at the center of this structure is growing.
People are now thinking:
“Is Özgür Özel really acting on his own political will?,
or a compromise candidate of another power center?”
Because the image does not give the impression of an independent leader.
On the contrary,
The image of a president whose will is besieged is emerging.
And this is where Kılıçdaroğlu's call for “purification” becomes critical.
Because that call was not only a moral call.
That call was also saying:
“The party is falling into the hands of an invisible network of relations.”
Look at the new language emerging in the CHP today...
Whoever asks questions is a traitor.
Anyone who criticizes is a palace man.
Whoever expresses discomfort is an operative.
This reflex is not a democratic reflex.
It's a reflex,
It is the reflex of structures that fear losing power.
And here's what's even worse:
A significant part of those who attacked Kılıçdaroğlu today,
names that until yesterday had no connection with the CHP's political line.
Those who were once in politics in other parties...
Those who come from the center right...
Those who come from nationalist lines...
The circles that until yesterday criticized the CHP the most...
Today, he is giving a lesson on loyalty to CHP members of years past.
They really make a mockery of human memory.
You are looking...
Sencer Solakoglu
Bahadır Erdem
Cemal Enginyurt
Adnan Beker
People who stood in other political climates yesterday have today turned into the ideological guardians of the CHP.
And the most tragic part is this:
Today, some of these names are trying to explain political ethics to Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.
It's really unbelievable.
For 13 years, he fought with the full power of the state,
his family was targeted,
death threats,
Today, they are lecturing political loyalty to a chairman who experienced one of the heaviest lynching campaigns in Turkey's political history.
Moreover, some of those who did this are people who joined the CHP only yesterday.
You really can't help but ask:
How much do you know about the history of the CHP?
Which struggle of this party were you involved in?
Which election night did you wait at the polling station?
In which period were you targeted for being a CHP member?
The CHP is not just a career field to cluster around with municipal power.
This party;
It is the historical memory of the Republic.
But today it is memory,
It is being turned into a propaganda apparatus for the newly established power order.
And that's exactly why the word “purification” sounds so scary.
Because purification,
not just people,
calls the established order into question.
“WHAT ARE THOSE WHO ATTACK THE CALL FOR ”PURITY" REALLY AFRAID OF?
Because everybody knows:
What is being discussed in the CHP today is not just a leadership issue.
This is what is being discussed in the CHP today;
a question of moral legitimacy.
And people are speaking openly now:
“Was the process presented as ”change" really a democratic renewal?,
or was it a new order of political power established through municipal power?
This is where Kılıçdaroğlu's call to “purify” touched the nerve endings of the system.
Because that call implied this:
“This party is moving away from its founding principles.”
And many of those who reacted most strongly to it today,
not people who have shouldered the party for years...
Political career circles clustered around the new order.
Look at the picture in the CHP today...
On the one hand, there are areas of economic and political power growing through municipalities.
On the other side, new loyalty relationships are emerging in relation to these power centers.
MP lists
PM balances
Blocs of congresses
Media relations
Social media operations...
They all seem to be increasingly shaping around the same center.
And this image is extremely dangerous for the CHP's historical identity.
Because the Republican People's Party has never been a movement that survived solely on municipal means.
This party;
was the party of ideas.
It was the party of principle.
He was the bearer of the idea of the Republic.
Today, the structure is gradually transforming into something else:
Politics is not based on principle,
a new organization based on the distribution of power.
And people see that.
Look what happened today...
The rumored relationships around Özkan Yalım...
Allegations in municipal circles...
Growing controversy on the Antalya line...
Issues raised through Gökhan Böcek...
All this raises serious questions in society.
And what is the reflex of the CHP leadership?
Transparency?
No, no, no.
Immediately the politics of slogans begins.
“Our leader...”
“Shoulder to shoulder...”
“No power...”
But society is no longer a slogan,
wants to see honesty.
Because why did people support CHP for years?
Hoping for more moral politics.
But today the same people are asking the question for the first time:
“Is the CHP really different from the system it criticizes?”
This is the real crisis.
And this crisis is not only external,
is growing directly from within the CHP base.
Because people now feel that:
There is no real confrontation within the party.
The congress discussions are not discussed transparently.
There is no clear position on municipal files.
There is no real self-criticism in the face of bribery allegations.
But despite this, everyone is engaged in a race of loyalty.
Who will say “our leader” louder...
Who will attack harder...
Who will show more aggressive loyalty...
This is the new political yardstick.
And this is a historical decay for the CHP.
Because CHP is not an allegiance movement.
But today's language is increasingly turning into just that.
Similar criticisms of the AK Party such as “one-centered politics”, “loyalty system” and “party-state relationship” are now being leveled against the CHP.
And anyone who says this is being silenced.
This is precisely why Kılıçdaroğlu's call to “purify” is not only political,
has become a historical call.
Because that call was actually asking:
“Will the Republican People's Party really remain the Republican People's Party,
or will it become a political tool of a new power oligarchy?”
IS A NEW “REGIME OF UNTOUCHABLES” BEING ESTABLISHED WITHIN THE CHP?
The Republican People's Party stands on a very dangerous threshold today.
Because inside the party it is no longer a discussion of ideas,
the psychology of immunity is growing.
And this psychology is more and more authoritarian,
more arrogant,
it turns into a more aggressive language.
Look at what happened
A former chairman just says “let's purify”.
What is the resulting reaction?
It is as if a state of emergency is being declared within the party.
MPs are lining up.
Provincial presidents are issuing a collective statement.
PM members are engaged in a loyalty contest.
Transfer names are taking frontline positions.
And the common message of all this is this:
“We won't let our leader be touched.”
And this is where the problem starts.
Because politics is not an area of immunity.
Especially a hundred-year-old party like the Republican People's Party,
cannot become anyone's personal shield of protection.
But today, the opposite structure is emerging within the CHP.
No questions can be asked.
There can be no criticism.
The assembly cannot be discussed.
Municipalities cannot be discussed.
Allegations cannot be questioned.
Why?
Because the label of “betrayal” is immediately attached.
This is no longer a democratic reflex.
This one;
power reflex.
And herein lies the gravest contradiction.
AK Party for years:
“Those who say ”you have partyized the state"...
Today, it has created a new municipality-centered field of power within the CHP.
For years:
“Those who say ”one man order"...
Today he considers criticism as automatic hostility.
For years:
“Those who criticize it as a ”culture of subservience"...
Today he runs mass loyalty campaigns on social media.
It really amazes people.
Because the CHP's historical memory does not contain such a heavy language of personalized loyalty.
This party is Atatürk's party, but even Atatürk did not establish a system of blind loyalty that completely destroyed the mechanism of criticism.
And today you look...
A political-economic power network around a municipality,
has cast a shadow over the party.
And under this shadow, Özgür Özel's image is being discussed more and more.
Because people feel that:
Özgür Özel is not like an independent leader with his own political weight,
acts as a transitional figure on which other power centers agree.
This is a very heavy perception.
But it is what creates perception in politics,
is the image that keeps emerging.
Assembly processes...
Municipal relations
Purges within the party...
Declarations of loyalty
They all magnify the same feeling:
“Another invisible center has emerged in the CHP.”
And this is why Kılıçdaroğlu's call for “let's purify” has provoked such a strong reaction.
Because that call is not only for individuals,
targeted the established system.
And maybe for the first time someone has said it openly:
“This party is turning into a new regime of untouchables.”
Look at a significant part of those who attacked Kılıçdaroğlu today...
Names that until yesterday kept their distance from the CHP...
Those who come from other political stripes...
People who have never taken part in the Party's historical struggle...
Today, he is applying a loyalty test to CHP members of years past.
It really is a cautionary tale.
Sencer Solakoğlu to Bahadır Erdem
Cemal Enginyurt to Adnan Beker
Some of them were part of the political climate that criticized the CHP the most until yesterday.
Now they come out and talk like the “real owners” of the CHP.
And the most tragic part is this:
These people are trying to explain political ethics to Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu today.
He was subjected to one of the heaviest lynchings in Turkish political history,
For 13 years, a general chairman who fought with all the state power of the government...
People who joined the CHP only yesterday are giving loyalty lessons.
This is no longer just political drift.
This one,
is memory loss.
And political movements that have lost their memory,
after a while it loses its sense of direction.
IT IS TIME FOR A REAL RECKONING, NOT SLOGANS OF “SHOULDER TO SHOULDER”
Today's CHP leadership may still not want to see reality.
But the grassroots sees it.
Society sees it.
And most importantly, he sees history.
Because the issue is no longer just a video released by Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.
Issue;
why that video created so much fear.
A person just shows up:
“Let's purify,” he says.
And the entire party machinery is on alert.
Why?
Because it is a call for “purification”,
It reopens all the debates that have been covered up for years.
Assembly shenanigans...
Allegations of pressure on delegates...
The power networks around the municipalities...
Bribery rumors
Purges
Order of loyalty
And perhaps most importantly:
The question of who really runs the CHP.
Because the perception of a significant part of society today is very clear:
The visible administration in the CHP is different,
the actual center of political power is different.
And the image of Özgür Özel is gradually moving away from that of an independent chairman.
More;
that other centers of power have brought to the fore by consensus,
It looks like a political apparatus whose will is besieged.
This is a very heavy picture.
But it is not only rival propaganda that creates this perception.
The image formed directly within the CHP itself.
Look at what has happened recently...
Municipal files
The growing controversy around Özkan Yalım...
Talked about relations on the Antalya line...
The allegations raised over Gökhan Böcek...
All this creates a serious breach of trust in society.
So what is the CHP leadership doing?
Is he starting a real confrontation?
No, no, no.
He's running a loyalty campaign.
“Our leader...”
“Shoulder to shoulder...”
“No power...”
However, society no longer wants to hear slogans.
Society wants transparency.
It demands morality.
He wants honesty.
Because why did people support CHP for years?
Hoping for cleaner politics.
But the picture that emerged today,
It raises the fear that the CHP is increasingly resembling some of the reflexes of the system it criticizes.
And perhaps the most painful part is this:
A significant part of those who attacked Kılıçdaroğlu today,
people who have never been in the historical struggle of this party.
Those who stood on different political lines just yesterday...
Names that have distanced themselves from the CHP for years...
Circles that have not experienced the pain, the burden, the lynchings of this party...
Today he is trying to distribute the deed of CHP.
He is applying a loyalty test to real CHP supporters.
You really can't help but ask:
When did you become a CHP member?
What price did you pay?
What pressure did you experience?
Which election night did you stay up all night?
In which period were you targeted for being a CHP member?
The Republican People's Party is not just a career field around which to cluster with municipal power.
This party;
It is the memory of the Republic.
And today that memory is under serious siege.
This is precisely why Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's call for “let's purify” has turned into a historical call.
Because sometimes that is what saves a political movement,
not new slogans...
It is the courage to face the rot within oneself.
What the CHP needs today is not new tweets.
They are not new displays of loyalty.
They are not the new “our leader” campaigns.
The CHP needs today:
is a real reckoning.
Assembly processes should be discussed transparently.
Municipal relations should be independently scrutinized.
The culture of lynching and purges within the party must end.
Instead of politics of loyalty, merit must return.
And those who cannot bear the political responsibility for all this should leave their seats.
Because sometimes resignation is not just a withdrawal,
is the last moral responsibility to save the party from total collapse.
What needs to be done today is clear:
What if you really want to purify...
Or in front of history,
to bear the responsibility for a political structure that has become the order he criticizes.