Turkey’s president asks Erdogan to form govt

ANKARA: Turkey’s president asked ruling party leader Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday to form a new government after Prime Minister Abdullah Gul handed in his resignation to make way for the Erdogan to take over power.

Gul has led the government since the Justice and Development Party (AKP) won a landslide general election victory in November. Erdogan was banned until recently from public office because of a 1998 conviction for Islamist sedition. Erdogan’s path to becoming prime minister was opened by his victory in a weekend by-election and he took his oath in parliament on Tuesday.

“The president has given me the duty of forming the next government,” Erdogan told reporters after meeting President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. Erdogan must present a cabinet list to Sezer before he can form a new government and seek a vote of confidence in parliament. —Reuters

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