Yilmaz: If I Had Been In Position Of Erdogan, I Would Have Not Applied To E.C.H.R.

ANKARA - State Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz who also acts as leader of the Motherland Party (ANAP), criticized Justice and Development Party (AK Party) leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan's application to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), and said, ''if I had been in the position of Erdogan, I would have not filed a lawsuit against the state.''
Speaking at a news programme on private CNBC-e TV Channel, Yilmaz said, ''legal remedies have exhausted for Erdogan following the decision of the Higher Election Board. The only remedy left behind is to apply to international judicial organs. I think that Erdogan has launched such an initiative. However, if I had been in the position of Erdogan, I would have not filed a lawsuit against the state as a politician aiming at ruling the country.''
When asked whether or not Turkey could accept the European Union's (EU) single monetary currency Euro, Yilmaz said, ''we did not put forward such a proposal. Transition from Turkish lira to Euro is not that easy under current conditions in Turkey.''
Responding another question, Yilmaz said, ''I do not feel any regret about ANAP's participation in the 57th government. I believe that we have served Turkey in the best way. We have decided to implement the economic programme. When the economic program is achieved, we will reach the political targets. However, a decision was taken to hold the early elections. Not only us, but the other two coalition partners will also be harmed''.
Yýlmaz said responding to another question about public surveys that half of the electors were still indecisive, that the public surveys carried out before the 1999 elections had made mistakes and the surveys could not even guess that the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) would be the second party in 1999 elections.
''I am not concerned about any election threshold, I believe that ANAP will get better votes this time,'' Yýlmaz said.
When asked if he would give support to the initiative of postponing the elections, Yýlmaz said that ''we can evaluate that as a party.''