dervis bayraktar — Dervis Bayraktar, a man who last year branded an opposition MP a “terrorist”, has been appointed to a prominent civil service position in the north. On Thursday, he was announced as the new private secretary to ‘labour minister’ Oguzhan Hasipoglu.
The 32-year-old bar proprietor and former chairman of the ruling coalition party UBP’s Famagusta district youth branch made the inflammatory comment during a protest in November last year. The rally was held in support of the ruling coalition amidst a prolonged parliamentary deadlock over the election of a new ‘parliament speaker’.
During the protest, Bayraktar aimed his remarks at Dogus Derya, a member of the opposition CTP, who had thrown water at Ziya Ozturkler, the UBP’s candidate for the ‘speaker’ role. Bayraktar’s speech took place in front of the building that housed the Turkish Cypriot legislature, where he declared, “as everyone can see, Derya appears to be a terrorist-like person”. He further demanded her resignation, insisting, “We do not want terrorists in parliament, she must resign and leave the parliament.”
Prior to the protest, Hasipoglu addressed the demonstrators at Sarayonu square, condemning the water-throwing incident as “unacceptable”. The tensions stemmed from a dispute over the validity of votes cast in an earlier election for the parliament speaker position held in October. The ruling coalition claimed Ozturkler had secured 26 votes in his favour, while the opposition contended that several ballot papers should have been deemed invalid due to multiple markings.
The chaotic events in the ‘parliament’ escalated when Ozturkler, having arrived early to secure the speaker’s chair, refused to leave amid opposition claims of his illegitimate election. As tensions heightened, UBP’s Emrah Yesilirmak physically restrained CTP’s Erkut Sahali, allowing Derya to approach the front and throw water over Ozturkler.
After a week of contention, the ruling coalition eventually agreed to hold a fresh vote. Ozturkler was re-elected as speaker with 27 votes in favour and 21 against, a position he has maintained since.
