Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim addresses members of parliament from his ruling AK Party (AKP) as he arrives for a meeting at the Turkish parliament on April 18, 2017 in Ankara. (ADEM ALTAN / AFP)
Turkey’s prime minister on Tuesday called on the opposition to respect the result of a referendum that will expand the powers of the office of the president.
Turkey’s main opposition party will formally present the Supreme Election Board (YSK) with a demand to annul the result of the referendum, after alleging major violations.
Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy chairman Bulent Tezcan will present the demand on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. local time, the party said in a statement.
In an address to legislators from his ruling party, Binali Yildirim said the people had voted to switch from a parliamentary to a presidential system.
“The nation’s will emerged freely from the ballot box… This work has now finished,” he said. “It’s wrong to say something after the nation has spoken,” he said.”
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An unofficial tally carried by the country’s state-run news agency gave President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s “yes” camp a narrow win.
Supporters of the ‘no’ vote protest in Istanbul, against the referendum outcome, Monday, April 17, 2017. The placards reads in Turkish: ‘No we will win’. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)
The opposition has been particularly incensed by a last-minute move from the YSK to accept ballot documents in envelopes without an official stamp, as required by Turkish law.
International monitors said the move undermined safeguards against fraud.
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The “Yes” camp won Sunday’s referendum with 51.41 percent of the vote but the aftermath has been shadowed by opposition claims of blatant vote-rigging and angry protests in parts of Istanbul.
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