Turkey
Abdulrezak Memis submitted his application to become a member of the Turkish parliament and spoke to Rudaw in Diyarbakir in March, 2023. Photo: Screengrab/Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A building caretaker from Diyarbakir (Amed) is on the preliminary list of candidates of an opposition party in the Turkish parliament, seeking to break the barriers and create more opportunities for people of his profession.
Abdulrezak Memis submitted his application to become a member of the 28th term of the Turkish Parliament on the Green Left Party and is now expecting approval from the party members to officially run in the upcoming parliamentary elections.
“Manufacturers become MPs, rich people become MPs, and professors become MPs, why can we building caretakers not become MPs?” Memis told Rudaw’s Mashallah Dakak last week, indicating that he believed laborers should also have the opportunity to enter parliament.
Memis used his job as an opportunity to get to know people and expand his network, using it as a method of spreading his election plans. He believes he stands a good chance of becoming an MP and that he could add a new color to politics and parliament itself.
In order for Memis to become an MP, he needs to chosen by the party members during an intra-party vote, the date of which is unknown. The party is expected to announce its final list of candidates on April 19. If selected, the people of the city will then get a chance to vote.
The Turkish presidential and parliamentary elections are set to take place on May 14, a month prior to its originally scheduled date of June 18.
The pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) will enter the upcoming general elections in Turkey through the Green Left Party, in order to dodge the possibility of dissolution, as a party closure case is ongoing against them with the next hearing set for April 11.
Abdulrezak Memis submitted his application to become a member of the 28th term of the Turkish Parliament on the Green Left Party and is now expecting approval from the party members to officially run in the upcoming parliamentary elections.
“Manufacturers become MPs, rich people become MPs, and professors become MPs, why can we building caretakers not become MPs?” Memis told Rudaw’s Mashallah Dakak last week, indicating that he believed laborers should also have the opportunity to enter parliament.
Memis used his job as an opportunity to get to know people and expand his network, using it as a method of spreading his election plans. He believes he stands a good chance of becoming an MP and that he could add a new color to politics and parliament itself.
In order for Memis to become an MP, he needs to chosen by the party members during an intra-party vote, the date of which is unknown. The party is expected to announce its final list of candidates on April 19. If selected, the people of the city will then get a chance to vote.
The Turkish presidential and parliamentary elections are set to take place on May 14, a month prior to its originally scheduled date of June 18.
The pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) will enter the upcoming general elections in Turkey through the Green Left Party, in order to dodge the possibility of dissolution, as a party closure case is ongoing against them with the next hearing set for April 11.
By Azhi Rasul
Comments
Rudaw moderates all comments submitted on our website. We welcome comments which are relevant to the article and encourage further discussion about the issues that matter to you. We also welcome constructive criticism about Rudaw.
To be approved for publication, however, your comments must meet our community guidelines.
We will not tolerate the following: profanity, threats, personal attacks, vulgarity, abuse (such as sexism, racism, homophobia or xenophobia), or commercial or personal promotion.
Comments that do not meet our guidelines will be rejected. Comments are not edited – they are either approved or rejected.
Post a comment