As Local Elections Approach

Our country will perhaps experience one of the most important local elections. The "important" assessment made before every election is different from others in this election for two reasons. First, despite the country being in an economic crisis with no end in sight, there is a possibility that the government's share of the vote will fall to a level that will force early general elections. The second is that the answer to the question "will citizens be able to make their voices heard at the ballot box in order to prevent the collapse in every field?" will be revealed. In other words, it would not be wrong to say that we are heading to an election in which the satisfaction of the people will be voted against the regime that was changed almost by imposition with the 2017 referendum.

Every election environment differs from other elections due to the differences in historical and social conditions. This election also has its own historical and social characteristics. Before we move on to these, it would be useful to set out the parameters that remain unchanged in the country's misfortune. It is important to remember that no matter which government comes to power, the unjust tax system (where indirect taxes play a role of 60-70%) remains unchanged. In our country, the tax burden is clearly on the wage earners and low-income earners, and no government has taken any steps to change this. 

No matter how much the elections change, there is no change in the perception of politics and politicians in the country. Politics wants to preserve its structure that appropriates the surplus value of social production on its own scale. Therefore, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, the seat of representation of national sovereignty, usually puts its own interests first. Deputies, who can become enemies to the point of almost gouging each other's eyes out, can come together unconditionally when it comes to their salaries and other personal rights. The situation is more or less similar in municipal councils. Zoning their own land and negotiating rent deals are almost commonplace, regardless of the party of the municipality. Of course, there are honest politicians who work to protect the interests of the nation. However, the small number of these people makes the general belief negative.

No matter how much the elections and the degree of importance change, the class nature of some problems is one of the elements that do not change. The place in the social system of soldiers who are martyred for their country, the class status of those who pay the heaviest price in disasters, the existence of class disadvantaged groups in access to health, education and transportation services are examples of this issue. There is another fact that we need to point out in this regard is that the deterioration of class criteria and income distribution has increased especially after 1980 and that this deterioration has accelerated in the last two decades. As income distribution deteriorates, class lines sharpen, permeability between classes decreases and the country turns into a caste system. 

In addition to these, there are also issues specific to today that citizens should keep in mind when going to vote in this election. Foremost among these is the "Presidential Government System", which can be seen as the source of all problems. With this system, the judiciary and the legislature in the country have completely fallen under the yoke of the executive and the separation of powers has disappeared. In every transaction and action of the executive, the will of one person comes to the fore, trampling national sovereignty like a doormat. As a natural consequence of such a system, merit and scientific approach have been eroded more than ever. Appointments of friends and relatives cause unqualified people to occupy undeserved positions in every field and everywhere.

With the abolition of the rule of law, political personalities in many units of the executive branch do not feel obliged to be bound by the law and cause the chronicization of a feudal residual order that emphasizes arbitrariness. With the politicization of the bureaucracy, which relies on these political personalities, a complete party state emerges. All the facilities and capabilities of the state are used to form the backbone of a party's election propaganda. With the mobilization of media capabilities, the opposition is made responsible for almost every bad practice of the government. 

In this environment, the president, who is also the head of the party, sees no harm in threatening the public and asking for votes. A completely unethical argument that central and local governments should be in harmony has been used to argue against the Constitution in force. Central government and local government should be evaluated within the framework of the principle of the integrity of the administration. However, the discourse is in flagrant violation of Article 123 of the Constitution and constitutes a crime. But there is no judicial authority left to investigate this crime. 

The entry of religion-based foundations and associations into schools is not only against the Constitution, but also against science, logic, morality and conscience. Psychologists, pedagogues and educators should have something to say about forcibly taking children to the mosque, setting up a model of a grave in the middle of the classroom, bringing a model of the Kaaba and making them stone the devil. But a nation is silent as if the dead has been sprinkled. The presence of millions of refugees brought into the country due to faulty foreign policies and the efforts of religion to dominate the social sphere in every field clearly threaten the Turkish national identity and the nation-state structure. Anyone who takes a stand against this is silenced. Capital sees no problem in having unethical relations with the government for its own interests in every field, including the media. 

The country's deteriorating economic balance and deepening poverty are not reflected in the public sector. The MPs see no problem in taking the salaries they can increase on their own and the extra creamy pensions they receive while the pensioners live below the hunger line. The Presidency of Religious Affairs has the right to choose luxury vehicles in the car rental tender, looking everyone in the eye. Although public buildings are sufficient, no one talks about how much the buildings rented on behalf of the public cost. 

The only solution to the economic crisis is to cut the salaries of wage earners and pensioners. No cuts are being considered in the money paid to the contractors of infrastructure facilities and hospitals, which are built at several times their actual cost and put the state under a huge debt burden. At the same time, indirect taxes are further increased, deepening the existing injustice in income distribution. It never occurs to anyone to increase the income tax. Even if it does, only the income of wage earners stands out. Household indebtedness rates are increasing significantly, but this impending danger is not on the agenda of any politician. 

The problems of those working in basic public services are increasing. Workers and citizens are pitted against each other and violence against them often goes unanswered. The main reason for this is the attempt to convince citizens, who are seen as potential voters, that they are superior to public service providers, and this is a very dangerous game. Replacing public servants is not as easy as appointing managers without merit. 

It can be argued how important the election will be under all these negativities. In a normal country, even a small portion of these negativities can change the government, but in Turkey there is no such change. To explain this only with the perception of success is to underestimate the issue. Because in a country that is almost on fire, what is seen as success should also be questioned. I will leave the disorganization and mood of the opposition aside for another article. 

It is naive to think that a society where civil society is not developed, where the law is not internalized and politics is seen as a source of livelihood will be saved by an election. However, we are going to an election that can be seen as an important chance for the people to remind the rulers that sovereignty belongs to the nation unconditionally. If this reminder fails, what we have experienced so far may remain as a trailer. While I am not hopeless, I am not optimistic either.