During a rally in the Mediterranean coastal province of Mersin, Turkish main opposition CHP leader Özel showed a “red card” to President Erdoğan, criticizing the hike in the pensions and minimum wage, which were lower than the annual inflation rate.
The red card surprise was heavily promoted by CHP a day before, but it failed to live up the expectations of many pro-opposition pundits. According to three January polls, AKP has closed the gap between CHP, drawing even. While high cost of living continues to be the number one problem of the nation, the fall of Assad boosted AKP ratings. CHP’s slippage was accentuated by its wavering stance vis-a-vis the regime change in Syria. A large number of pro-opposition influencers in social media, even former CHP congress people argued that the secular Assad was better than fundamentalist Hayat Tahrir al Sham.
Turkish main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Özgür Özel on Jan. 9 attended the municipality’s opening ceremony in the southern Mersin province.
Özel previously announced that he had a surprise in the ceremony that turned into a rally.
“Starting from Mersin, I invite all pensioners, minimum wage earners, and the oppressed in Turkey to show a red card to this government. Pensioners, are we ready to keep a red card in your pockets from now on, to show these red cards to them as you see this hike (in salaries), this oppression?,” Özel said, showing “red card” to the government and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, according to Duvar English.
Turkey increased the minimum wage for 2025 by only 30 percent, to 22,104 Turkish liras ($624), remaining 14 percentage points below 2024’s annual inflation rate, which was announced at 44.38 percent. The semi-annual hike for civil servants and retirees were limited to 12% and 15%, respectively though, though VP Cevdet Yilmaz promised “an adjustment” for the poorest pensioners.
“Tayyip Erdoğan says boycott high prices. I embrace this call and protest against those who make farmers and lemon producers miserable in agriculture, those who make shopkeepers close their shops without selling their products, when (real) inflation is 80 percent and their own TÜİK inflation is 44 percent,” he said.
He continued showing “red card” to the government on the next day on Jan. 10 during another opening ceremony in the Kemalpaşa district.
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Spokesperson Ömer Çelik on Jan. 9 deemed Özel’s move a “gag”.
“So much for the political gag of the day. The CHP leader throws the ball away again,” Çelik said.
Following some criticisms over the move, Özel told journalist Şaban Sevinç he found it “strange that it is mocked.”
“We will distribute a red card to all pensioners. We will spread this action in waves. Some people underestimate this, but we have started a campaign to bring the elections in 2025. The main theme of all rallies will be red cards. On the back of the red cards, there will be a comparison of the purchasing power of pensions before and after Erdoğan,” he said.
While Ozel’s launching of SHP’s 2025 rally season might be failure in the eyes of exports and even voters what lies underneath is more serious. Foreseeing that Erdogan needs his party’s parliamentary votes to avert becoming a lame-duck in 2028, CHP is pressing hard for snap elections latest by November 2025.
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