In his speech at Beştepe, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said, “Turkey has entered a new path with the closing of the polls and the announcement of the results. God willing, the Century of Turkey has begun and the doors of the period of our country’s rise to prominence have been opened. With our new Cabinet, we will continue to embroider the Century of Turkey.” (Sabah, 03.06.2023)
Comment:
The Century of Turkey is nothing more than instilling new hope in the hopes that have been exhausted by chronic problems and crises; it is nothing more than reading ode to people who yearn for the glory and splendour of their ancestors; it is nothing more than deceiving the Turkish people who know the nature and reality of the true revival with the Ottoman Caliphate that came to the gates of Vienna, made Europe tremble and taxed today’s superpower USA; it is nothing more than making false promises to people with fancy and closed words of unknown content.
The fact that even the rhetoric and slogans he uses and utters evoke America (such as the American Century) is the most obvious proof that Erdogan is inspired by the USA instead of Islam, and that instead of taking the Prophet (saw) as an example and role model, or at least following the footsteps of his ancestors, the Ottoman Khilafah (Caliphate), he follows and follows Uncle Sam and takes a role from him.
Let’s leave this aside, what is the Turkish Century? Are its content, its shape and form clear? When a period is associated with a country, it means that that country puts its stamp on that period and dominates the rest of the world. For example, when we talk about the American Century, people understand America’s hegemony and leadership in the world with its values, domestic technology, dollar, military power, economy, etc. Since a period is associated with a country, it is understood that that country has left its mark on that period and leads the world, then will Turkey or Erdoğan be able to leave its mark on the 21st century? Will it be able to lead the world with its values, technology and other aspects mentioned above? Will the TL become the world’s currency, just like the dollar? To put it more accurately, will it be able to dethrone the dollar? Will it be able to overthrow the USA and take the leadership seat? There is no need to be a scholar, even an ordinary person knows that this will not be possible and would laugh. With the current system and regime, Turkey is not even a member of the UN with the right of veto like the other five countries. How can we talk about Turkey leading the world?
Even crows would laugh at the idea that Turkey, with its makeshift technology, imported values, dollar-indexed currency, dependent economy and so on, will make its mark on this century. Let alone ordinary citizens, even Erdoğan himself does not believe this. With its TOGG, Kızılelma, TCG Anadolu, GÖKBEY helicopter, Altay tank, Bayraktar SİHA and UAV, Turkey’s century will not be reached, and the rise to power will not be realised. Let’s accept that these are successes, even though their design, engine and other components belong to foreigners, but are they enough to unseat the USA? Absolutely not. Moreover, this project is Erdoğan’s project. Erdoğan is here today and gone tomorrow.
On the other hand, the old or the new cabinet cannot embroider the Turkish Century, and the revival of imported and outdated capitalism, which is not born out of the faith of the Ummah, cannot be realised. Only with a new ideology (Islam) and the values, systems and governance born from this ideology can the Turkish Century be achieved. Anyone who seeks glory, splendour and grandeur outside of Islam is doomed to be humiliated, despised and to be the servant and slave of others. I wonder why Erdogan, who is looking for new Omaris and always cites Omar’s words about a sheep on the edge of the Tigris as an example, does not adopt the following words of Omar (ra) as his motto? “At one time we were a poor people, but when we sought honour and glory, Allah honoured us with Islam. He made us glorious. If we seek honour and glory in other things outside of Islam, Allah will humiliate us again.”
Ercan Tekinbaş