Bekir Bozdag: Kilicdaroğlu fabricating issues to benefit his party

Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdağ has accused Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu of “fabricating” issues in order to smear the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), after the latter raised concerns that he would be jailed.

“This is something completely fabricated by the CHP, aiming to help itself and smear the AKP and the government. The discussion originated from the CHP. It is trying to create a perception about something that does not even exist,” Bozdağ said in an interview on public broadcaster TRT.

“What is the source of these discussions? They originate from discussions over the imprisonment of a CHP lawmaker. Mr. Kılıçdaroğlu should answer questions instead of trying to direct the debate into irrelevant points,” the Hurriyet daily cited Bozdağ as saying.

Bozdağ said Kılıçdaroğlu had “some questions to answer.” “If he cannot answer those questions, newspapers and other sources will start to speculate on it. With his comments that he is going to be imprisoned, you see his guilty conscience,” he added.