President: Parliament Meeting Unconstitutional
The 11th convocation of the Georgian Parliament is about to confirm its power despite it’s legitimacy being challenged in the Constitutional Court. President Salome Zurabishvili wrote on social media last night that the first session would be therefore be unconstitutional.
President Salome Zurabishvili gave three specific reasons why the convening of parliament is not legitimate:
First, she said, “massive electoral fraud has undermined its [Parliament’s] legitimacy.” Secondly, she said that she had refused to convene the first session of Parliament, noting that “the Constitution does not recognize anyone to act as a substitute.” Finally, Zurabishvili stressed that her appeal to the Constitutional Court is still pending.
Despite the President’s refusal to convene the first session because she does not recognize the elections, and despite the wide-scale alleged rigging of the elections, and hence the legitimacy of all 150 MPs, the Parliament is proceeding.
Only GD MPs will sit in the first session of the Parliament. The opposition forces that won the mandates refused to enter the legislature as they consider the elections rigged. The ruling party did not invite the ambassadors to the first meeting.
Meanwhile, the citizens stayed up all night on Rustaveli Avenue in protest against the first session of the Parliament. On the morning of November 25, they are still protesting near the legislative building against the convening of the Parliament. Heavy police, including riot units, are mobilized at the side streets of the Parliament. The MPs are already inside the building. GD Honorary Chair Bidzina Ivanishvili, who is the ruling party’s leading candidate, is also present at the session.
The first session begins at noon. The Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili said last week that at the first session the Parliament would recognize its authority, the powers of all 150 MPs would be recognized, factions would be formed, the Parliament Speaker and his deputies would be elected, the parliamentary committees and their heads would be formed and elected.
“The parliament’s recognition of its authority, which Georgian Dream intends to do today, is illegal,” said constitutional lawyer Vakhushti Menabde, stressing that the parliament is “obliged” to wait for the court to rule on its constitutionality and before that, “all the decisions that the Parliament will take in this situation will be illegal, not only the recognition of its authority, but also its legislative work, the approval of the budget and the government”.
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This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)
