Opposition Wants Ruling Party to be Banned from Running

The nine-party opposition bloc has alleged that the ruling National Movement has failed to submit list of MP candidates to the Central Election Commission by 6pm on April 21, when the deadline expired, hence it should be banned from running in the May 21 parliamentary elections.

The ruling party representatives brought party-list to the CEC few minutes before the deadline expired, but the nine-party bloc has claimed that the National Movement, caught by surprise by Parliamentary Chairperson Nino Burjanadze’s last-minute decision, submitted only “empty papers” instead of lists. Burjanadze, who initially led the ruling party’s list of MP candidates, said on April 21, that she would not run because of a disagreement with other leaders of the ruling party over composition of the list.

“The National Movement has submitted not a full list of MP candidates to the CEC,” MP Kakha Kukava of the nine-party bloc said. “This list submitted to the CEC includes those names enlisted in the list before the Burjanadze’s statement. The new list is now being compiled in the President’s office and they want to secretly submit it to the CEC overnight… What we demand is to see the lists submitted by the ruling party now so that to prevent its change.”

According to the law members of the CEC are entitled to see a list of MP candidates submitted by parties. Opposition nominees in the CEC have demanded to look at the ruling party’s list, but they were refused.

“They raised the issue unexpectedly when the list was already sealed off and put in the [CEC] chancellery, which is now closed,” Zurab Kachkachishvili, the CEC spokesman told Civil.Ge. “It will be possible for CEC members to look at the lists tomorrow when the chancellery is reopened.”

Meanwhile, Gigi Ugulava, the Tbilisi mayor, and one of the leaders of the ruling party denied the opposition’s allegations as groundless.

Speaking at the late-night political talk show, Primetime, aired by Rustavi 2 TV, Ugulava named first nine persons in the list. There are three cabinet members in the top nine – Davit Bakradze, the foreign minister; Koba Subeliani, the state minister for refugees and accommodation and  Zaza Gamtsemlidze, the minister of environment (he is third in the list and he also runs as a majoritarian MP in the Tbilisi’s Vake single-mandate constituency). The third in the list is actor Gia Roinishvili, Ugulava said.

Others in the top nine include: Nugzar Tsiklauri, a publisher; Khatuna Ochiauri, a member of the Tbilisi City Council (Sakrebulo); Mikheil Machavariani, the vice-speaker of the parliament; MP Gigi Tsereteli and Davit Darchiashvili, executive director of the Open Society Georgia Foundation (OSGF).

Ugulava also said that Petre Mamradze, former head of the government’s administration, was also in the list. He also pointed out that Mamradze was enlisted after the Burjanadze’s recommendation.