Turkish Parliament Approves New Constitution Change

Turkish lawmakers approved a new Constitution early Saturday as deputies completed voting on 18 articles. 
A total of 339 MPs voted in favor of the law that will now head to a referendum that will likely be held in early April, Turkey's Anadolu Agency (AA) reported. 
The initial round of ballots on the reforms was completed after each passed with more than 340 votes. 
A second round of voting on the 18 articles began Wednesday after almost three weeks of debates in parliament. 
Turkey’s lawmakers have endorsed a bill on amendments to the country’s constitution changing the current parliamentary system to the presidential form of government. 
The proposed amendments, initiated by the ruling Justice and Development Party, also include the abolition of the Office of the Prime Minister. They also allow the president to continue being a member of a party, expand his legislative and executive powers, and give him the right to form the cabinet of ministers. 
Another important change will be increasing the number of seats in the parliament from 550 to 600 and reducing the minimum age requirement for the candidates for MPs to 18.

Source: QNA