Chronicle of an announced political end. The mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, ended up in handcuffs with two accusations. The first is corruption and auction disturbance. The second is collaboration with terrorist organization. It is an excellent arrest and probably also of a case of watching justice. The first citizen of Megalopolis on the Bosphorus is considered the ‘Golden Boy’ of the Turkish opposition, the only one really able, for ambition and charisma, to directly challenge President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and contend for the first office of the state. The story is made of dates, but not of coincidences. On Sunday, Imamoglu should have participated in the CHAP Congress, the Republican Party of the People and greater political training formation. Yesterday he was arrested and two days ago his graduation diploma was declared null. Having profitly attended the university represents a necessary condition to run to the presidential elections. So, from that moment, it had to be assumed that something would happen shortly. Since he became the first citizen, moreover, Imamoglu has had problems with justice, but they seemed more an obstacle to his career. In 2021, for example, he ended up on trial by insult to the high electoral commission (Ysk). The result is that he was condemned at first instance and could not present himself as a candidate for the presidential elections of 2023. It would seem that Erdogan wanted to get thought for the next.
Imamoglu was arrested in the early morning, with an operation carefully studied from a scenographic point of view. Hundreds of policemen, the area of his house isolated to everything, except for cameras. In the same hours, dozens of local leaders and collaborators ended up in handcuffs, a sign that the operation had been coordinated and planned for some time. Among these are also the mayors of şişli and Beylikdüzü. The first is a historically republican majority district, the second is what Imamoglu ruled before becoming mayor. The first accusation, that of corruption, dates back to that period from 2014 to 2018. Imamoglu, in particular, will have to respond to the accusation of auction disturbance and of having favored some candidates who participated in the tenders. The second accusation is even more ideological and difficult to try. The first citizen would have stained himself with the crime of association with terrorist organization for having assumed member suspects to sympathize for the PKK, the workers’ party of Kurdistan, with whom Erdogan has come down to Patti just recently, through his historical leader, Abdullah Öcalan. It is a detail of no small importance. The Turkish president calibrates his moves very carefully. The agreement with the Kurds is functional to the modification of the Constitution. The votes in Parliament are not there, given that the opposition, including the IMAMOGLU party, has not collaborated. The ‘Reis’ is nothing left to resort to the minority. In a moment of mutual need, it was possible to find a compromise. New awards to the Kurds in exchange for the support in Parliament to the reform drawing. And then early elections. This is where the conspiracy against Imamoglu comes into play. Erdogan wants to run knowing that his main opponent cannot participate. It is still early to say what will happen in the country and if this is enough. Of course, the president has no intention of demort.
