New Parliament’s First Session Set for November 25, Noon, GD Likely to Sit Alone
The first session of the 11th convocation of the Georgian Parliament has been set for November 25, Speaker Shalva Papuashvili announced at a briefing today, November 22.
Although the Constitution requires the first session of a new Parliament to be convened by the country’s President, and Salome Zurabishvili, who does not recognize the results, has no intention of doing so, the ruling party is pressing ahead with its convening. Papuashvili, who accused President Zurabishvili of violating the Constitution, said the first session would begin at noon on Monday.
Papuashvili said that at the first session (1) the Parliament will recognize its authority; (2) the powers of all 150 MPs will be recognized; (3) factions will be formed; the Speaker and deputies will be elected; parliamentary committees will be formed and their heads will be elected.
Meanwhile, two complaints have been filed with the country’s Constitutional Court, which legal experts say should delay the formation of a new parliament, but the GD appears to be turning a blind eye.
Papuashvili called the experts’ opinion on the issue “disinformation,” which he said came from foreign-funded CSOs, and claimed that the President’s appeal to the Constitutional Court could not stand in the way of forming a new Parliament.
Papuashvili also spoke about the first week of the new Parliament. He said that the Parliament will set the date for the election of a new President of Georgia, as the term of incumbent Salome Zurabishvili expires in December. She is the last President to be elected by popular vote. Georgia’s sixth President will be elected by a 300-member electoral college consisting of 150 members of Parliament and representatives of the autonomous republics of Abkhazia and Adjara and local authorities.
In addition, Papuashvili said that the new Parliament will give a vote of confidence to the new Government and its program.
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GD Expected to be Alone at Opening Session
While GD is apparently going to be alone at the opening session, following the announcements by the opposition parties that they will not enter and will not legitimize the new Parliament, GD officials say they they expect otherwise: “November 25 will come and after their powers are recognized, in the second part of the day, everyone will see who the opposition really is: they will not give up their mandates again [like in 2020].”
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“Either they renounce the mandates and destroy themselves, or they do not renounce the mandates and humiliate themselves,” Papuashvili said, adding that the opposition would act on the words of its foreign “patrons.”
However, the GD does not seem to be concerned about the possibility of a one-party Parliament. “Today’s opposition, those four forces that crossed the threshold, do not represent the will of their voters, but of their foreign patrons,” he said. Papuashvili claimed that the opposition is not “competent” to work in Parliament.
In addition, Papuashvili stated that the diplomatic corps accredited to Georgia had not been invited to the first session of Parliament. He explained that this decision was based on the view that “the elections and the first session of Parliament are our internal state affairs” and was aimed at “minimizing the undue influence of foreigners.” He added, “Their involvement in this process is not mandatory.”
This announcement follows a call by opposition leader Giorgi Gakharia, who urged the diplomatic corps not to attend the session to avoid legitimizing it. Papuashvili, however, denied claims that the decision was influenced by concerns that Ambassadors would refuse to attend.
What to Expect?
November 25 is the next turning point in the ongoing processes of Georgian politics. All eyes are on the first day of the Parliament.
The opposition had said it plans to hold the biggest rally near the Parliament to prevent the GD deputies from entering the legislative building.
This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)
