With one week to go until Turkey’s Presidential and Parliamentary elections, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is pulling out all the stops to secure his third term and his party’s power.
Turkey’s Islamist President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, attacked his main rival, the social democrat Kemal Kilicdaroglu, during his latest party rally on Sunday.
In front of a crowd of 1.7 million people, he called his opponent a ‘drunk’ and an ‘infidel’.
The 20-year incumbent accused the opposition leader of wanting to divide the Eurasian country.
“We will not let Kilicdaroglu, who travels with terrorist organisations, divide this country,” he said during a speech broadcast live on Turkish television.
“Mr Kemal, drink in barrels if you want. My people will not let the drunkard take the square and leave,” added the president.
During his own rally in Istanbul on Saturday, Kilicdaroglu promised he would pacify and unite the country in the event of a victory.
“I, with my friends, will bring spring to this country, I will bring peace. No matter who you are, we will deal with the problems of all who live in this land. We will never discriminate against anyone,” the opposition candidate assured.
President Erdogan is facing his toughest elections yet, as his popularity took a hit with soaring inflation and faces criticism over his government’s handling of the devastating February 6th earthquakes which killed over 48,000 people in Southern Turkey.
Turkish citizens will take to the polls on May 14th to decide the future of their nation.