President Makes Decision over PM, but Speculations Persist

Leading parliamentarian from the ruling National Movement party Giga Bokeria told reporters, after talks with President Saakashvili, that the President has already decided who he will nominate as the new Prime Minister; however he refused to unveil the name of the nominee.

?The President himself will make a statement about this,? MP Giga Bokeria said.

The President?s spokesperson Alana Gagloeva said on Tuesday that Mikheil Saakashvili will announce the name of the new candidate for Prime Minister either on February 8, or February 9.

Meanwhile, the Georgian media continues to speculate over possible candidates. According to the latest unofficial reports, the President is considering either Georgian Ambassador to Russia Valery Chechelashvili or Russian-based Georgian businessman Levan Vasadze, who is the vice-president of the Russian company Sistema, for the post of Prime Minister.