Justice Minister Surpasses Erdoğan in Visibility, İBB Chairman Claims

Murat Ongun, chairman of İBB Media Inc. and currently on trial for "organizational leadership," has directly addressed the public through his YouTube channel, focusing his criticism on Justice Minister Akın Gürlek. Ongun asserted that Gürlek has significantly outshone not only his cabinet colleagues but also President Erdoğan himself in terms of public visibility and media presence.

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Attention, please? Turkey is now talking about only one person: Justice Minister Akın Gürlek. In terms of visibility and being on the media agenda, Minister Gürlek has surpassed not only his cabinet colleagues but clearly President Erdoğan himself.

In a video titled "Let's not forget that mysterious death," Ongun argued that Gürlek's actions and media coverage have created a perception that he, rather than elected officials, is governing Turkey. He pointed to media tracking reports as evidence, suggesting that while the economy and its minister, Mehmet Şimşek, are supposed to be the focus, Gürlek has become the sole figure dominating headlines. This, Ongun implied, distracts from economic woes and allows citizens to direct their dissatisfaction towards Erdoğan.

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The perception that Akın Gürlek is running the country has formed and is spreading rapidly.

Ongun highlighted that even proactive foreign policy initiatives by Erdoğan and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan are being overshadowed. He observed a shift in public discourse, where "everyone used to talk about Erdoğan; now everyone talks about Akın Gürlek." He further noted a palpable fear surrounding Gürlek, stating, "Everyone used to be afraid of Erdoğan; now everyone is very afraid of Akın Gürlek." Ongun described the minister's dominance over the past five months as an "unprecedented case" in Turkish bureaucracy, citing the Rahmi Koç investigation as an example where Gürlek appeared to make all decisions unilaterally.

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Everyone used to talk about Erdoğan; now everyone talks about Akın Gürlek. Everyone used to be afraid of Erdoğan; now everyone is very afraid of Akın Gürlek.

Despite the critical tone, Ongun offered a form of "congratulations" to Gürlek, calling his ability to achieve such dominance a "communication success." He characterized Gürlek's approach as effectively leveraging "populist operations" to solidify his position and please the public, citing the Gülistan Doku investigation as another instance where a case, previously closed, was reopened and successfully concluded under Gürlek's ministry, leading to positive public reception.

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A minister dominating Turkey like this in 5 months was an unprecedented case.