Turkey's Opposition Can End the Country's Economic Crisis - by Umit Ozlale and Selim Sazak

As Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s power weakens, the Turkish economy’s crisis deepens. Since the end of 2012, the Turkish lira has lost more than 80 percent of its value, the worst slide in the developing world after the Argentine peso.

In its failed attempt to prop the lira up, Ankara opened the money spigot and blew through more than $128 billion in foreign exchange reserves, which many respectable economists now believe to be in the negative. In less than two years, Turkey’s Central Bank cycled through three governors. Just in the past month, rumors in the foreign media about a replacement at the Central Bank—followed by the sacking of three of its six board members, yet another interest rate cut that defies all economic logic, and Erdogan’s threat to expel the ambassadors of 10 European countries—poured oil on a five-alarm fire.

For Turkish citizens, the prices keep rising. Inflation neared 20 percent in September. According to Turkey’s largest trade union, more than 7 million minimum wage earners face hunger. Polls show that almost two-thirds of the Turkish public is struggling to make ends meet. Turkey’s best and brightest are emigrating in droves, even though the labor minister thinks they’re leaving not because there’s anything wrong in the country but because they’re free-spirited adventure-seekers.

Note EU-Digest: If a coalition of opposition forces has their way, Erdogan's days as the President of Turkey could be numbered.

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