Turkish Parliament acquits ex-minister on charges of corruption with ruling AKP votes

Turkey's parliament has acquitted one of four ex-ministers who faced graft charges with the votes of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

264 deputies voted against sending former Economy Minister Zafer Ça?layan to the Supreme Council in order to be tried on charges of bribery and corruption, while 242 deputies voted for it at a secret vote during the General Assembly session on Jan. 20. Seven deputies abstained from voting, as three votes deeemed non-valid and another one turned out to be empty.

Ça?layan, who was not present at the Parliament during the vote due to the funeral ceremony for his late mother, was one of four implicated ex-ministers with former EU Minister Egemen Ba???, former Enrivonment and Urban Planning Minister Erdo?an Bayraktar and former Interior Minister Muammer Güler.

As a matter of fact, the very first voting has already implied the course of the upcoming debate over results of the all of the each separate voting on four former ministers. Even if eventually none of them are sent to the top court, the results for each of them and the votes in favor of sending them to the court will be a key element, -- at least while analyzing internal dynamics of the ruling party.

Hours before the vote, leaders of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) delivered speeches at regular weekly meetings of their parties' parliamentary groups.

The meetings offered the opposition leaders not only the chance to deliver messages to their grassroots, but also to ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputies whose decision was set to be decisive on whether to send former ministers Egemen Ba???, Zafer Ça?layan, Erdo?an...