Former Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye Bülent Arınç said that his speech at Ahmet Davutoğlu’s son’s wedding ceremony had been taken out of context and that different meanings had been attributed to his words. In a social media statement, Arınç thanked Fatih Mayor Ergün Turan for his comments following the speech, saying that he had known Turan since his time as president of TOKİ and that he was a successful mayor. Condemning the insults directed at him, he also said that he knew how he would settle accounts with the relevant individuals.
Arınç said that he had served as the closest aide to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for more than 5 years and to Ahmet Davutoğlu for around 1.5 years during their terms as prime minister, and that he had served both of them loyally. Stating that he shared a longstanding brotherhood and comradeship in the cause with Erdoğan, Arınç said that their paths and beliefs were common and that they had never fallen out. He emphasized that he was not opposed to the AK Party and had rejected offers to leave the party.
Arınç said that people should oppose insults directed at the President, adding that those with a political identity should show greater tolerance toward harsh criticism. He also noted that, under current judicial and ECHR rulings, the President has a political identity as well as the role of party chairman.
Why it matters
The development shows that the controversy surrounding the speech at the wedding ceremony concerns not only the expressions used, but also how those expressions are interpreted through Arınç’s political past and current relationships. Arınç’s emphasis on his positions during the Erdoğan and Davutoğlu periods, his ties to Erdoğan, and his stance toward the AK Party reveals that his statement was defining his political position beyond a personal defense. The distinction he drew between insulting the President and politicians’ openness to harsh criticism, meanwhile, shifts the debate toward the limits of expression and political responsibility. The reference to current judicial and ECHR rulings leaves open the question of how the legal basis for this distinction should be assessed.
Background
Arınç is not a new name in the FikirPilot archive: we have published 2 reports mentioning this name in the past 90 days; the most recent was dated September 12, 2026.