Kılıçdaroğlu draws ire from allies after admitting secret deal with anti-refugee leader before elections

Leaders of the 'Table of Six' posing after a meeting before the elections. (Photo: AA)

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Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who ran for the president as the candidate of a large opposition bloc in the recent elections, has admitted that he made undisclosed commitments in an agreement with an anti-refugee leader ahead of the presidential runoff vote in late May.

Before the runoff, Kılıdaroğlu and Ümit Özdağ, head of the Victory (Zafer) Party, had signed a protocol, which was publicly disclosed and included sections on "counterterrorism" and the repatriation of refugees. As part of the protocol, Özdağ endorsed Kılıçdaroğlu in the second round.

However, the agreement was not limited to these provisions, Özdağ revealed in a recent interview with the T24 news portal. Kılıçdaroğlu had also promised three ministries, including the Interior Ministry, and the leadership of the National Intelligence Organization (MİT) to his party, he said.

"No one knew of the protocol"

During a live broadcast on Habertürk last night, Kılıçdaroğlu admitted that there was a "special protocol," but declined to disclose its content. "It was between two people, he said. "It wouldn't be morally right for me to talk about that."

When asked about his party spokesperson's denial of Özdağ's claims, Kılıdaroğlu said no one had any knowledge of the protocol.

The Victory Party received 2.5% of the votes in the parliamentary elections, while Sinan Oğan, its presidential candidate, received over 5% of the votes in the presidential election. When both candidates approached them to secure their backing in the runoff vote, Özdağ and Oğan parted ways, with the latter endorsing the incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who eventually won the elections to extend his two-decade rule.

Özdağ's revelations add to the criticism that Kılıçdaroğlu faced following the election for giving significant concessions to smaller parties in an attempt to bring them to his side. Four of the parties forming the Nation's Alliance, also known as the "Table of Six," ran in the election under Kılıçdaroğlu's CHP and secured a total of 39 seats in the parliament, despite their relatively low public support.

What did the allies say?

Some of those allies criticized him after his recent confession, while others downplayed it.

Felicity (Saadet) Party Spokesperson and MP Birol Aydın told bianet, "The fact that Mr. Kılıçdaroğlu and Mr. Özdağ came together and made an agreement was merely an intention. Since the election was lost, this [agreement] did not materialize. Therefore, I don't think it would be beneficial to talk about these today since the election was lost."

Serkan Özcan, the spokesperson for the Future (Gelecek) Party, criticized Kılıçdaroğlu on Twitter, saying, "No other words or statements could have removed the great sorrow I feel due to the election defeat. Thank you, Mr. Kılıçdaroğlu!"

Özcan, when reached by phone by bianet, stated that the issue was "extremely sensitive" and that he would not comment on behalf of his party, adding, "I wrote the message on Twitter believing in it, and I genuinely said 'thank goodness it didn't happen' from the heart."

Turhan Çömez, a member of parliament from the Good Party, shared his thoughts on Twitter, saying, "While we were seeking votes for him in the field, he was apparently making deals and signing protocols in the dark corridors of Ankara.

"His friends had no idea, and his coalition partners were unaware. Can the trust that was recklessly wasted be regained, Mr. @kilicdarogluk?"

"Agreements behind the back of the allies"

Bilge Yılmaz, the Head of Economic Policies at the Good (İYİ) Party, expressed in a lengthy Twitter message, "On my behalf, I sincerely apologize to our people for not being able to prevent Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's candidacy in the past elections. And I apologize not only because we lost the elections but also because we did not struggle enough against the methods Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu used to secure his candidacy and win the elections."

Yılmaz further stated, "Trading the hopes and institutions of this nation as if they were his personal property behind closed doors and behind the back of the allies with whom he embarked on this journey is not consistent with democratic norms or political ethics."

İdris Şahin, the spokesperson and an MP for the Democracy and Progress (DEVA) Party, sarcastically remarked on Twitter, "Thank God; 'A protocol entrusted to two people's honor!..'"

Democratic Party (DP) officials, when contacted by bianet, stated that they would refrain from making comments on the matter. (VC/VK)