Caliphate, then Sharia, or?...

Although many people are surprised that the head of the Department of Religious Affairs performed Friday prayers (July 24) with a sword on his back after the Hagia Sophia was transformed from a museum into a mosque, this should not come as a surprise.

Ahmet Taşgetiren, one of the oldest and most experienced columnists in the life of the Islamist front, said in a "backstage report" about two weeks ago, "Tayyip bey will do what he has not been able to do in the next period of his political life," which neither surprises nor causes excitement. Because these goals of Mr. Erdoğan were known since the early 1990s, his tactical moves at different stages of his political life, as a consistent politician, never had him given up his main strategic goal.

After the 2009 municipal elections, the deadline set for the full implementation of the plans was 2023, and the slogan was "We will hit the nail on the head". Mr. Erdoğan has since asked voters to support his plans. When the country's governance system was completely changed in the elections until June 24, 2018, the period of realization of the set goals one by one (not in the meaning of "one by one" said by the metro Taghi) began.

As we have written before, it is impossible to deny the role of the deterioration of economic indicators and its obvious negative effects on the government’s political rating in accelerating these works.

It is no secret that for a party that has been in power for a long time, economic factors play a decisive role rather than ideological factors in the election results over the years. Just as Turkish society has not been able to adapt to presidential rule after 68 years of parliamentary rule, the system, which has been applied for two years, has shattered the economy in the first place. (Although President Erdoğan is also the president of the Wealth Fund, which includes the country's largest state-owned companies and banks, it has not been possible to borrow a single cent from abroad with the Wealth Fund's guarantee.) Despite the failure of all attempts to split the opposition Union of Nations in the March 31, 2019, municipal elections, the rising ratings of the two parties formed by those who split from the AKP are leading Erdoğan to embrace the religious ideology.

First of all, to the point he wants. However, it should be reiterated that Erdoğan, who is currently the most experienced politician in Turkish politics and has full control over the functional mechanisms of the state, always takes the election into account when taking radical steps for his own ends. Both from two points of view:

• The deterioration of the economic situation reminds him that he has no choice but to cling to religious ideology in order to consolidate his supporters, and Mr. Erdoğan is not afraid to take the most radical steps in his political life for the sake of this consolidation. He has the head of the Department of Religious Affairs gone up to the pulpit in the building of church origin and preached a sermon with a sword in his back, and he silently welcomes the veiled curse of the head of the Department of Religious Affairs to the founder of the Republic from the pulpit, hoping to strengthen consolidation;
• Mr. Erdoğan is already preparing a religious future for himself, given the possibility of defeat in an early or timely election. Therefore, whether he is forced to go to the polls early or not, Erdoğan may declare himself caliph next spring. And if he loses in the political arena, he will be able to defend his position on another throne as the caliph of the Islamic world.
• Can Mr. Erdoğan renounce the secular regime of Turkey and declare Sharia law before or after the return of the caliphate? He may or may not try to do so. In order to do so, he needs to come out of the election, at least, much stronger than he is now. Otherwise, secularists will not allow it. If he does not declare his caliphate by the spring of next year, the opposition may hinder the caliphate if he does not win the election. Therefore, we believe that he will declare the caliphate as soon as possible.

Goals and objectives require it in all senses.

Mayis Alizade