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Turkey PM: Opposition Must Respect Referendum Results | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Turkey’s Prime Minister Binali Yildirim pictured in Ankara on June 14, 2016. (AFP)


Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim called on Tuesday the country’s opposition to respect the referendum result that grants the president sweeping powers.

In an address to legislators from his ruling party on Tuesday, Yildirim said the people had voted to switch from a parliamentary to a presidential system, adding: the “opposition should not speak after the people have spoken.”

An unofficial tally carried by the country’s state-run news agency gave President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s “yes” camp a narrow win.

Opposition parties called for the vote to be annulled because of a series of irregularities, particularly an electoral board decision to accept ballots that didn’t bear official stamps, as required by Turkish law.

International monitors said the move undermined safeguards against fraud.

Ignoring these monitors, US President Donald Trump called Erdogan on Monday to congratulate him on the referendum.

Voters Sunday narrowly approved constitutional amendments that will replace Turkey’s parliamentary system with a presidential one. Under the new system, the president will be able to appoint ministers and senior government officials, issue decrees and declare states of emergency.

Erdogan called the referendum “the most democratic election … ever seen in any Western country”.

Italy’s foreign minister called for Turkish opposition forces to be involved in reforms following the weekend’s referendum.

Angelino Alfano in a written statement Monday also called for a “cooling of internal tensions.”

Alfano said Italy takes note of the referendum outcome and is awaiting the “final evaluation of the observers” by international monitoring bodies.

The minister added: “In the meantime, coherent with Turkey’s membership in the Council of Europe, we are hoping for a cooling of internal tensions in the country, and, in addition, involvement of the opposition in the implementation path of the reforms.”