TURKISH Cypriot ‘prime minister’ Mehmet Ali Talat and Peace and Democracy Movement (BDH) leader Mustafa Akinci announced yesterday they had formed an alliance aimed at forming a new ‘government’ of “parties that said ‘yes’ to the Annan plan”.
The statement followed a meeting at the headquarters of Talat’s Republican Turkish Party (CTP) in north Nicosia that was billed as a last-ditch effort to form a majority ‘government’ and prevent a re-run of last December’s general election.
Talat said after the meeting: “We discussed a number of formulas for creating a majority government and have come up with a model that will enable us to do this, and from now on we will be working with the BDH,” Talat told reporters.
The meeting came after a spate of resignations that left the coalition CTP-Democratic Party (DP) ‘government’ holding just 23 seats in the 50-seat ‘parliament’.
Speculation is now rife on whether or not the new coalition will include the Democratic Party led by Rauf Denktash’s son Serdar.
A source close to the DP said it was too early too say whether or not a new coalition would include him and that discussions were continuing.
Talat, too, declined to comment on whether of not Denktash’s party would be in the new coalition, but if his comment that the coalition would include only parties that backed the Annan plan is taken at face value, it is unlikely that the DP will be invited to join.
The most likely formula is an alliance that includes – as well as the CTP and BDH – Huseyin Angolemli of the Communal Liberation Party (TKP), Izzet Izcan of the United Cyprus Party (BKP) and two pro-solution independents.
Such a formula could provide the 26 seats needed to form a majority ‘government’.
Both Talat and Akinci said they were keen to capitalise on the positive atmosphere created by the Annan report that heaped criticism on the Greek Cypriot leadership while praising Talat and Turkey for their positive approach to negotiations on solving the Cyprus problem.
“We have to work fast… and for this we need a government that is strong and has a majority in parliament,” Talat said.
If a completed formula is forthcoming, Talat and his ‘government’ will resign and Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash will be obliged to appoint a new ‘prime minister’. It is inconceivable that a party leader other than Talat could be nominated as only he can muster enough support from other parties to form a ‘government’.
