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Upon a question posed on a TV program he attended, President and Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said that if he continues serving as president after June 24 elections, the first thing they will do is to end the State of Emergency. Right after that, Erdoğan added, "Ending the State of Emergency doesn't mean to entirely abolish or not returning to it".
Upon a criticism that "no proper election campaign can be carried due to the State of Emergency" being asked to him, Erdoğan said, "The State of Emergency has no impact on the campaigns. May they give one example, which campaign was affected?"
"Ending State of Emergency doesn't mean there is no return to it"
Erdoğan went on:
"First of all, the State of Emergency is different than the one when we came to power. On the contrary, this State of Emergency is a security measure implemented to relieve the regions, which are under terrorism threat, of the terrorism threat.
"When we came to power, there was State of Emergency. We lifted it in a month.
"If I continue serving as president after June 24 elections, the first thing we will do is to end the State of Emergency if god permits. Ending the State of Emergency doesn't mean to entirely abolish or not returning to it.
"We will again take the harshest precautions against terrorism. Has France ended the State of Emergency totally?"
CHP's İnce: End it now, who's stopping you?
Responding to Erdoğan's statement, main opposition party Republican People's Party (CHP) presidential candidate Muharrem İnce said on Twitter:
"The surveys have upset him. He started to declare my pledges. He is going to end State of Emergency, he says. End it now, who's stopping you? Let us get rid of being the country which goes to election under State of Emergency". (ŞA/TK)
