Should everyone but Erdo?an shut up?

Right after the Turkish Central Bank lowered its interest rate by another 0.25, the same as last month, reporters asked Prime Minister Ahmet Davuto?lu what he thought.

The question was important because President Tayyip Erdo?an has been asking the Bank to lower interest rates further, hoping that this would help the economy to recover. Erdo?an has been questioning the concept of an independent Central Bank from the start and thinks the elected government should be in full command of it.

Perhaps as a preemptive move to calm the possible fury of Erdo?an, Davuto?lu?s answer implied something like ?Not enough, but OK.? The markets hoped that answer put an end to the row - at least until next month?s meeting of the Central Bank board - and the value of the Turkish Lira recovered slightly, after a continuous drop against the U.S. dollar.

But then came a thunderstorm from Erdo?an. During an address to small business owners on Feb. 25, he slammed the Central Bank very harshly. ?Its ?independence? is only applicable regarding us. It is only ?independent? when taking decisions against our expectations,? he said. Then, without directly giving the name of Central Bank Governor Erdem Ba?ç?, he questioned whether the Bank was independent from the Turkish government but dependent on certain other sources. He did not elaborate who those other sources could be, but his words reminded one of the ?international interest rate lobby? repeatedly mentioned during the Gezi Park protests of June 2013.

Erdo?an?s speech was followed by even heavier words from Erdo?an?s chief economy advisor Yi?it Bulut against Ba?ç? and Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan, who has been running the economic policies of ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Parti) governments...