Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said on October 30 that the elections were “conducted absolutely cleanly, democratically and fairly” and promised that “absolutely everything will be open. Everyone can look into everything.”
He thanked the Central Election Commission for their “openness” and the Prosecutor’s Office which “promptly reacted” to CEC’s appeal and claimed that “all this indicates that neither CEC nor anybody else has anything to hide.”
He further said: “The elections were completely fair, free and competitive. Therefore, there is no problem with the openness of the process. Everyone can check everything. “
He noted: “We can also take into account calls from Western politicians, including [HR/VP ]Borrell’s call for an investigation.” He said: ” [HR/VP] Borrell’s call was that the relevant agencies in Georgia should investigate all violations of the law, and this initiative is also very important in this regard. I thank the CEC and the Prosecutor’s Office for taking all of this into account,” said Kobakhidze.
Notably, Prime Minister Kobakhidze emphasized the possibility of an internal investigation, but did not respond to calls for international involvement in it. A day earlier, Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili rejected the possibility of an international investigation into the alleged election violations. He said: “If there are complaints, they will be considered. The jurisdiction in this country is Georgian and not that of any other country. Georgian administration and courts are of the highest level. Anyone, including foreigners, the former U.S. ambassador and others, who accused the Georgian judiciary of bias were defeated in Strasbourg by the Georgian judiciary.”
Also Read:
- 30/10/2024 – U.S. President Joe Biden Statement on Democratic Backsliding in Georgia
- 30/10/2024 – 2024 Election Live Blog | GYLA Seeks Annulment of Results in All 2,263 Machine-Voting Precincts
- 30/10/2024 – Prosecutor Launches Investigation into Election Fraud Allegations, Summons President for Questioning