Well done, AK Party

Forcing the Higher Education Board (YOK) bill through Parliament and spending the whole night doing so, and with such indecent haste it resembled something being rescued from a fire, the AK Party has unequivocally demonstrated that it is two-faced.

One side of this face is the one taking substantial steps towards European Union membership, a face that is courageous enough to eschew the stiff rhetoric and rigid taboos of the past and one that is far sighted enough to carry fossilized issues such as Cyprus towards a resolution. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who in doing all these things, has attached great importance in not damaging any institutions, while at the same time listening to opinions from a broad spectrum. In doing so he has created an atmosphere of open debate and reconciliation whenever possible.

The other AK Party face, of course, is the imam-hatip issue, which was suddenly resurrected, appearing to be an attempt to convey the party’s gratitude to its supporters by exploiting religion. The extraordinary nocturnal YOK bill proceedure is more akin to a country in crisis or even at war. While the AK Party was seeking consensus and reconciliation on all other issues, it became stubborn to the point of intransigence, with the prime minister announcing devastatingly, "Only I make the decisions."

I can no longer recognize today’s AK Party from that which rose to power. The party I supported because of its approach to many issues has either successfully masked itself or has managed to dupe me into believing in it.

The YOK incident cannot be portrayed as "correcting an unjust practice," and neither can it be described as "restoring the rights of a few thousand students," because then people would be entitled to ask, "Does this crisis justify the remedy of the rights for few thousand students?"

With their two-faced attitude, the AK Party has proved to the electorate that it will never become a "center" party. It has revealed itself to be a party that, in the future, just for the sake of winning praise in religious circles and attracting a small number of votes, is prepared to make unfathomable decisions. With its stance on the imam-hatips, the AK Party has proved correct those who were suspicious of the party having a hidden agenda.

The AK Party has acted in such an irresponsible manner that it has, in one stroke, destroyed the "reservoir of prestige" it had worked so hard to build up. The worries and concerns voters originally had in their minds have justifiably returned. As if that was not enough, the party has forced the Office of the Chief of General Staff, which was making efforts to conform to EU stipulations, to make a statement.

The AK Party has upset the apple cart itself.

Only way out: Do not insist
There is only one way for the AK Party to pull itself out of the hole it has created for itself, and that is to refrain from insisting on the bill remaining in its present form, but to agree to its re-legislation following a presidential veto, in line with the examples it previously set. Rather than embroiling itself in such controversy as this, the AK Party has to establish a new platform for debate and start work on a formula that addresses the whole panorama of problems within the education sector.

It appears the AK Party will continue to govern the country for the next seven years or so. It should not overestimate itself. With approaches such as the one that handled the imam-hatip issue it will continue harm itself, and the country. With this new piece of legislation, the AK Party has sent a message to the electorate. At the same time it has shown imam-hatip students how much the ruling party loves them. A presidential veto would demonstrate the irritation of a substantial majority of the country, and the ruling party could then in turn say to its supporters, "We have done what we could."

Leaving things as they are will only escalate tensions, which however way you look at it, is not a good thing for Turkey.