Erdogan Urges Support in Referendum on Turkey Presidential Power
- Vote on constitutional changes to take place in April
- Erdogan courts voters with promise of better healthcare system
A pedestrian looks at his cellphone as he walks past a Turkish national flag in the Sultanahmet district of Istanbul, Turkey, on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2016. Turkish food prices showed the biggest monthly drop seen in September, bringing annual consumer inflation to the lowest level in over a year and giving more leeway to monetary policy makers to cut borrowing costs this month.
Photographer: Kostas Tsironis/BloombergTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan chose the opening of a new hospital to begin the campaign for constitutional changes to bring more power to his office, drawing on past pledges to improve health care to appeal to voters ahead of the upcoming referendum.
“In this hospital, you will remember the feeling of being a human-being and be able to say ‘my state is taking care of me,”’ Erdogan told a crowd gathered in the southern city of Mersin on Friday. “Are we ready to say ‘yes’ at the ballot box in April?”