Following the resignation of Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Husamettin Ozkan on Monday, two more ministers and 17 members of parliament (MPs) have also quit the ruling Democratic Left Party (DSP) later in the day.
Culture Minister Istemihan Talay, State Minister Recep Onal as well as the Acting Chairman of DSP parliament group Ali Iliksoy andother 16 MPs have announced their resignations from the party to follow Ozkan's suit, reported the Anatolian News Agency.
The 16 MPs includes Abdulsamet Turgut, Hakan Tartan, Faruk Demir, Gaffar Yakin, Edip Ozgenc, Zeki Eker, Akif Serin, Mustafa Kemal Tugmaner, Bahri Sipahi, Cihan Yazan, Tamer Kanber, Tunay Dikmen, Hasan Ozbek, Halit Dikmen, Ibrahim Yavuz Bildik and PerihanYilmaz.
The split of DSP occurred reportedly due to the mounting disappointment within the party at the 77-year-old ailing Prime Minister and DSP chairman Bulent Ecevit's refusal to step down fromhis post, which caused deterioration of the country's political uncertainty and economic instability.
In a statement issued after meeting with Ecevit earlier in the day, Ozkan announced that he took the action because Ecevit would no longer need him.
"I have attached importance to being faithful to the DSP leader,honesty, compromise, tolerance, dialogue and patience since I went into politics. I have done my best to maintain the economic balances, political stability and harmony in the coalition," he said.
"I explained my views about the economic and political situationin the country to the prime minister once again today," Ozkan explained, adding that "the prime minister, however, needs my work anymore and I decide to resign from the 57th government."
(Xinhua News Agency July 9, 2002)
