PM: New gov't aims to build freer, just, stable Turkey

ANKARA

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said that the new Justice and Development (AK) Party government will work in the new term to build a country where people enjoy more freedoms, justice and stability.

"We will proceed towards our target of a Turkey that is freer, more just, and more credible," he said on Monday during an address to new AK Party MPs at the party’s headquarters in Ankara.

Davutoglu stressed that their aim was to build a stable and dynamic Turkey "which grows stronger in democracy".

"Turkey will be the country that all will be proud to be a citizen of, and the civilization center of the world," he said.

The Turkish premier maintained that a new constitution is the key need, and the responsibility of drafting it is upon the shoulders of not only the AK Party but also all political parties.

"As we are entering a new legislative term, it is my call to opposition parties. We are ready for cooperation in any field that serves the interests of our nation. Let's pass the reforms that our people need with a constructive will," he added.

Davutoglu further stated that they will put into practice new reforms with a "liberal and participatory sense" within the first three months, right after they receive a vote of confidence and have parliamentary approval for the government budget.

"Turkey will be a strong country that is growing and developing as we take concrete and just steps," he said.

"We provide the solid steps of the past 13 years [under AK Party rule] as a guarantee for this," he added.

In Nov. 1 snap elections, the AK Party regained its single-party majority with 317 seats in the 550-seat Turkish parliament by winning 49.5 percent of the votes.

The party secured almost nine percent more votes compared to the inconclusive general election on June 7 that saw no party win an outright majority.

The new MPs of the Turkish Grand National Assembly will take their oaths on Tuesday and the parliament will also elect their new speaker, after which the president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is expected to give the mandate to Davutoglu – as the chairman of the AK Party – to form a new cabinet.