Turkish president nominates moderate as PM

Turkey’s president today designated Abdullah Gul, a leading moderate figure from a party with Islamic roots, as prime minister and asked him to form the country’s first majority government in more than a decade.

Gul, however, is regarded as a temporary appointment until party leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan can take power.

Erdogan is the undisputed leader of the Justice and Development Party, which swept November 3 elections.

He is, however, barred from the top post because of a conviction for inciting religious hatred.

Erdogan is expected to dominate a new government until legislators can change the constitution to allow him to head the government.

President Ahmet Necdet Sezer made the appointment of Gul two days after parliament opened and swore in new legislators.

Today it was Erdogan who announced the new government’s action plan.

He promised a series of changes in laws to expand freedom of rights, religion and expression and promote a more transparent government.

He also said that privatisation would be speeded up.

“With the power of governing alone, our government will provide urgent solutions to problems that have been piling up for years,” Erdogan said.

“We’ve said ‘from now on, nothing will be the same in Turkey’, now we’re at the beginning of those days.”

The Justice party captured 363 seats in the 550-member legislature enabling it to form the first majority government in 15 years.

Gul said he will submit a Cabinet list to Sezer for approval on Monday.

“Turkey has lots of problems,” Gul said. “But our party is ready. From now on it is time to get to work.”

Erdogan earlier proposed several names for prime minister to Sezer.

Allowing Sezer to chose the prime minister and not the Justice party may make it easier for Erdogan to take control of the government once he can lift the constitutional ban and serve in government.

In an interview on Friday, Gul vowed to maintain the secular country’s ties with the West.

“Our aim is to show that world that a country, which has a Muslim population, can also be democratic, transparent and modern and cooperate with the world,” Gul said in an interview with the English-language Turkish Daily News.

The party has tried to distance itself from its Islamic roots and says that it is looking to pursue policies promoting social welfare, but many secularists fear that it could have a hidden Islamic agenda.