The 'torpedo' confession of the bar association president is on the agenda of the Parliament: Hard challenges to Akın Gürlek!

Labor Party (EMEP) Gaziantep Deputy Sevda Karaca, upon Ankara No. 2 Bar Association President Gökhan Ağdemir's words that "70 bar association member lawyers have been appointed as judges and prosecutors in two years", said to the Minister of Justice Akın Gürlek, "Considering the allegations that close relatives of AKP executives were made judges/prosecutors by passing interviews in the past and the 'appointment by reference' system voiced by the Ankara No. 2 Bar Association president today, Do you accept that merit has been completely put aside and interviews have been turned into a manipulation mechanism? he asked.

Karaca submitted a parliamentary question to the Presidency of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, requesting that Minister Gürlek respond to the issue.

In his motion, Karaca stated that Ankara No. 2 Bar Association President Gökhan Ağdemir's statement that "70 bar association member lawyers have been appointed as judges and prosecutors in two years" reveals that the interview and appointment processes for judgeships and prosecutorships, which should be carried out according to the principles of impartiality and merit, are shaped through bar association references and ministerial privileges.

Emphasizing that judicial independence and impartiality is a prerequisite for trust in justice, Karaca argued that the judicial mechanism in Turkey is shaped in line with the political interests, reference networks and staffing focuses of the government, rather than merit and constitutional principles.

While Karaca evaluated the statements of the President of Ankara Bar Association No. 2 as a "concrete indicator" of this situation, he stated that what happened was not isolated, but was a continuation of the government's policy of making the judiciary its own backyard.

The proposal also included documents showing that AKP Deputy Özlem Zengin's niece was publicly saluted by the President at the draw ceremony and that the interview lists prepared by TÜRGEV, TÜGVA and similar foundations and associations close to the government were forwarded to the judicial institutions.

Karaca said, "While thousands of young lawyers are sweating in written exams, while successful candidates are eliminated in non-transparent interview rooms, the fact that those who find 'references' in the corridors of power and partisan bar associations are made judges and prosecutors is proof that there is no need to hide the rot."

In the proposal, he asked the following questions to Minister Gürlek:

"Is Ankara No. 2 Bar Association President Gökhan Ağdemir's statement, 'The Ministry gave us privileges, we made 70 of our members judges-prosecutors in 2 years', considered by your ministry as a crime report and staffing confession? Has any administrative review or investigation been initiated regarding this statement?

-Is there a special 'quota' or 'privilege' granted to Ankara Bar Association No. 2, associations and foundations close to the government (TÜRGEV, TÜGVA, etc.) or political party organs in determining the candidates who are successful in the judge and prosecutor exams or called for an interview? What meetings have been held between your Ministry and these structures?

-Do you accept that merit has been completely shelved and interviews have been turned into a manipulation mechanism, considering the allegations that close relatives of AKP administrators passed the interviews and were made judges/prosecutors in the past and the 'appointment by reference' system voiced by the president of Ankara No. 2 Bar Association today?

-How many of the judges and prosecutors who have been accepted to the profession in the last 5 years have been involved as managers, members or employees in any political party organization, bar associations close to the government, associations or foundations? What is the distribution between these people's written exam scores and interview scores?

-How will the rights of thousands of young people who were eliminated in non-transparent interviews despite being successful in the written exam be compensated?

-What destroys trust in the judiciary is not merit; "Do you plan to end this favoritist interview system based on loyalty and switch to an auditable examination and appointment system?"