“The issue of the presidential candidate is not something I can decide on my own. There is a Nation Alliance. We will decide on that all together,” Kılıçdaroğlu said in an interview with daily Sözcü on Dec. 9.
During the parliamentary discussions on the government’s 2021 budget, Kılıçdaroğlu asked ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lawmakers, “Who told you whether or not I will be a candidate?” after a group of the ruling party MPs loudly challenged him to run for presidency, in reference to the 2014 and 2018 presidential elections in which the main opposition leader chose not to be a candidate.
Kılıçdaroğlu’s words have not been seen as an indication of his willingness to run in the next presidential polls. But he clarified that this was not right time to talk about the candidacy as it would be disrespectful to the members of the oppositional coalition.
“It will be our party, our lawmakers and the Nation Alliance that will decide on the candidacy. Because we act all together,” he suggested, repeating that the most important issue was the agreement of the Nation Alliance on the return to the strengthened parliamentary system.
“We are not focusing on the career of individuals but the future of our country. This is what the AKP lawmakers don’t understand,” he added.