CHP Deputy Says Party Needs To Win Support Of Conservative Citizens

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Adana deputy Faruk Loğoğlu has said the party should extend its popular base to include conservative citizens, so that the party can convey to them that corruption and bribery have no place in ethical politics.

Loğoğlu stressed that although a portion of conservative people in the country are uncomfortable with the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), they still do not see CHP as an alternative.

“Those who dislike the AK Party do not see the CHP as a good alternative due to ideological concerns and CHP's actions in the past. Additionally, the CHP experiences difficulty in promoting its ideas and vision to the public, even though it comes up with brilliant works and projects.”

Speaking to Today's Zaman, Loğoğlu complained about the CHP's inability to reach out to conservative citizens to communicate its message that secularism does not object to differences in lifestyles.

“The main problem for the CHP isn't about the formulation of solutions. The real problem lies with the lack of a clear agenda and strategy to inform public about those solutions [that the CHP comes up with].”

He also touched on the debate that arose after Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said the CHP does not have the courage to apologize over the notorious massacre took place in 1937 in Dersim district of the province of Tunceli as a brutal response by state, seeing as the ruling party at that time was the CHP. The government, led by then-Prime Minister İsmet İnönü, responded violently to an alleged rebellion led by Seyyid Rıza, the chief of a Zaza tribe in the region.
Loğoğlu said the responsibility of committing the brutal massacre in Dersim lies with the state, not the ruling party itself. He further said that the state, which acted wrongly in the past, continues to tackle issues in a wrongful manner, as was depicted by its heavy-handed response to the Gezi Park protests and its efforts to derail the Dec.17 and 25 corruption and graft probes.

Vedat Denizli (Cihan/Today's Zaman)