Turkish President rejects regime shift after referendum on constitutional amendments

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has discarded claims of a regime change after Sunday's referendum on constitutional amendments.

"In my 40 years of political life, I have had no such claims to change the regime," Anadolu news agency quoted Erdogan as saying in an interview to a local news channel.

He said the debates on regime change ended in the country after Mustafa Kemal Ataturk established a modern Turkey as a republic.

Erdogan said that the present government system is not responding to current needs.

Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) has claimed that the constitutional change would lead to a regime change.

 

Expressing confidence over the poll predictions, Erdogan said that almost all polls predicted a 'Yes' victory.

The people of Turkey will vote on Sunday in a referendum on constitutional amendments passed by the Turkish parliament earlier this year that would hand wide-ranging executive powers to the president.

Turkish parliament had this year in January passed the 18-article bill with 339 votes in favour which was nine more than the required number to put the proposals to a referendum.

The proposal would boost executive powers of the president if it is passed.