Turkey's Erdogan has increased the number of doctors around him and may be vulnerable ahead of 2023 elections amid signs that he may be too ill to run for reelection.
In recent months, a series of videos have surfaced in which the Turkish leader has not looked well. Some of them are not as clear as others, but, taken together, they raise some obvious questions about Erdogan’s health.
At times, he has looked quite gaunt. In tandem with this footage are rumors about the president’s health, including stories alleging he has been dealing with increasing forgetfulness, bouts of breathing problems, confusion, vomiting, and the implantation of an internal defibrillator.
In a video that received considerable attention this past July, Erdogan seems to fade out and slur his words during a televised holiday greeting to AKP members. According to reports, the president has reduced encounters with the press, and is being pumped up with painkillers before public events.
Analysts argue that it should be clear by now that Erdogan, through the AKP, has either hollowed out or bent Turkey’s political institutions to his will. In this context, it is hard to imagine that an election organized in 45 days could be free and fair.
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) suffered humiliating defeats of its mayoral candidates in Turkey’s major population centers, including Istanbul, in the 2019 local elections.
Regular polling since those elections reveal that the AKP’s popularity is soft, even as it maintains a grip on Turkey’s political institutions and the media.
No comments:
Post a Comment