Oligarchic clique's devious plans

İhsan Yılmaz

As I have previously written in this column, when former Interior Minister Idris Naim Şahin resigned from his party, he said in his resignation letter, “When it comes to governing, it is understood that [the party] prefers the guidance of a small oligarchic clique comprising politicians and bureaucrats whose intentions are uncertain.”

Şahin, a longtime friend and political partner of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, insisted that “the government is run by a small oligarchy of elites in a way that excludes broad segments of the party constituency and the Turkish people.” This narrow oligarchic group is composed of a number of bureaucrats and young advisers. News portal rotahaber.com's chief editor, Unal Tanık, has written that Erdoğan gave up on getting regular feedback from his party's parliamentarians years ago, and that since 2013 even his ministers have begun to lament to their close associates that they don't have access to Erdoğan. Tanık wrote that Erdoğan seems to be talking to only one of his ministers, his intelligence chief, and a few other bureaucrats and advisers.

It seems that this elite clique headed by Erdoğan is waging psychological warfare against the Hizmet movement, trying to present it as a terrorist organization. Erdoğan keeps referring to the movement as a terrorist organization that, acting on the orders of foreign powers, is trying to stage a coup against him. He even likened Hizmet volunteers to hashish-consuming assassins, the Hashashins (the so-called assassins of 12th-century Persia and Syria).

I am seriously concerned about four major -- and devious -- developments that may follow. First, Erdoğan and his oligarchic clique may arrange for a prosecutor to prepare a lawsuit against Hizmet on terrorism charges. The Yeni Şafak daily's Cem Küçük, who seems to be very close to the National Intelligence Organization (MİT), keeps writing that some academics, journalists, prosecutors and police officers who are allegedly affiliated with the Hizmet movement could be charged with both terrorism and spying charges. According to Küçük and some other pro-Erdoğan journalists, some prominent figures of the Zaman daily, Today's Zaman, the Bugün daily, Samanyolu TV and the Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV), together with some academics (myself possibly included), may face charges of terrorism and spying. Küçük says that this “spy organization” steals national security information and gives it to foreign countries at GYV meetings.

Second, as my fellow columnist Emre Uslu has said, a fake assassination attempt on Erdoğan may be staged so the finger can be pointed at Hizmet. They can never prove these stupid allegations, but with fabricated evidence, etc., they can confuse the public and throw a smokescreen over the corruption investigations. In 1930, an assassination attempt on Mustafa Kemal Ataturk was staged, and he used this opportunity purge all his critics and potential rivals. Some of my readers will recall my mention of how a Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputy told me just after the Gezi incidents that seeing Erdoğan so easily bend the truth about consuming alcohol and doing illicit things in a mosque, he was worried about such a terrible plan.

Third, as the same AKP deputy told me, there may be a fake coup attempt against the Erdoğan government that would make him a victim and a hero just before the elections and give him the opportunity to send all his critics to jail. Remember that Boris Yeltsin became a hero after this kind of coup attempt.

Fourth, there are rumors that this oligarchic clique is trying to turn the Hrant Dink assassination case upside down and accuse the Hizmet movement of plotting the deed. Until now, everyone, including the AKP, firmly believed that Ergenekon was working to convince international observers that the so-called Islamist alliance between the AKP and the Hizmet movement was putting pressure on non-Muslims in Turkey. According to the rumors, this clique will first peg the Dink assassination on some police officers and then try to link them to the movement.

The evidence revealed so far shows that the corruption cases are so strong and the amount of money involved so unbelievably large that Erdoğan and his clique may do everything they can to stop the investigations.

Published on Today's Zaman, 31 January 2014, Friday