The people's agenda has caused panic in the Palace

Politics Service

The regime, seeking to conceal the deepening poverty and the burning issues related to the public's livelihood difficulties, is trying to set the agenda itself.

The Palace administration, which does not want fundamental issues such as unemployment, hunger, rising rents, food prices, pensions, and minimum wage to be discussed, panics when any of these topics come up.

The weak spot of the regime, which paints a rosy picture at every podium it finds, asks the people for a little more patience, recounts heroic tales in the region, and tries to consolidate politics with tricks, is the people's outcry against their real problems.

AKP members who have recently made critical statements about the agenda items for which the people are seeking urgent solutions have caused discomfort in the Palace.

The deputies' statements that they find their pensions sufficient, that ‘I can't make ends meet on a deputy's salary either,’ and that ‘we will address the problems of pensioners when conditions are right’ have drawn widespread criticism from the public as they expose the regime's mask.

Finally, Labour and Social Security Minister Vedat Işıkhan's gesture of offering pensioners half a simit in Ordu has become a talking point. The images were shared on social media with the reaction, ‘Half a simit for those who can't make ends meet.’ AKP Group Deputy Chairman Muhammed Emin Akbaşoğlu said that the oil to be extracted from Gabar would be reflected in the form of a welfare share for pensioners.

THE PALACE IS UNCOMFORTABLE

Let's recall the statements that caused panic in the regime camp over the last few days:

• Mersin MP Hasan Ufuk Çakır, who left the CHP to join the AKP, criticised pensioners demanding a raise in their monthly payments, citing geopolitical risks. Çakır said, "They're jumping up and down about a 20,000 TL pension. Brother, you don't live in Switzerland! Greece is on that side. Armenia is over there. Syria is down below. Occupying forces are waiting at the top. When the British come from that side, will they look at my wife and not look at your honour? Why don't you think about that? Let's give a respectful applause to these two statesmen who have put their hands on Syria and are trying to end terrorism in Turkey!"

Former AKP MP Şamil Tayyar stated on his social media account that Çakır's words were unacceptable. Tayyar said that President Erdoğan and the party leadership were also uncomfortable with these statements.

• AKP Group Deputy Chair Özlem Zengin argued that the opposition was not sincerely addressing the problems faced by pensioners, saying, "They see issues related to pensioners as a popular topic. They are calculating how much rating and how many tweets they can get from this.‘ Zengin's statement, ’We are the party that cares most about pensioners; the poor are the group that votes for us the most, may they grant us their rights," also drew intense public reaction.

• AKP Tekirdağ MP Mestan Özcan argued that an MP's salary is insufficient, saying, ‘An MP spends at least 1.5-2 times their salary.’ Özcan responded to the question, ‘Is an MP's salary not enough?’ by saying, "Let me put it this way: I will give you my pension and my MP's salary. Come and manage these for a month.‘

• MHP Rize Provincial Chairman İhsan Alkan said, ’Tea isn't enough, brother! We're losing tea, we're losing Rize. If you ignore pensioners, pensioners will ignore you at the ballot box.‘ Alkan said, ’My mother tells me, “If you can't solve it, you'll get your answer at the ballot box.” What can I say to my mother? I say, “You're right, mother.”"

Note: This article is translated from the original article titled Halkın gündemi Saray’ı panikletti, published in BirGün newspaper on February 3, 2026.