On October 7, the Speaker of the Parliament Shalva Papuashvili announced that the ruling Georgian Dream party will initiate another round of impeachment proceedings against President Salome Zurabishvili. The speaker said at a briefing that the reason for filing the complaint with the Constitutional Court was her visits to European capitals last week. According to Papuashvili, the impeachment would have a “symbolic and principled” significance so that she would go down in history not as the former president, but as the impeached president.
On October 7, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze presented the pre-election program of the ruling Georgian Dream party, pledging that by 2028 the state budget will exceed GEL 50 billion (approx. USD 18 billion.) Mostly speaking of the economy and increased state funding in various sectors, PM Kobakhidze emphasized the necessity of resetting relations with the U.S. and the EU, as well as the pursuit of a pragmatic policy with Russia, along with cooperation with NATO and partnership with China. GD’s Honorary chairman Bidzina Ivanishvili and chairman Irakli Gharibashvili did not attend the event.
At a briefing, President Salome Zurabishvili once again called on citizens to participate in the October parliamentary elections, further encouraging youth representatives to volunteer as election observers to defend the votes. Zurabishvili also announced the creation of a coordination platform at Orbeliani Palace to closely monitor the election day. “On the elections’ day, a coordination platform will be set up at the President’s residence so that we can monitor everything that will happen on that day and then celebrate the victory together,” said the President.
President Salome Zurabishvili started consultations with opposition political parties on the composition of the future interim government to be formed after the October parliamentary elections. Leaders of “Coalition for Change” were first to appear at the Presidential Palace to hold talks with the President. “In my opinion, the process is going very well. The President’s initiative is timely, correct, and very rational,” one of the leaders of the “Coalition for Change,” Nika Gvaramia, told reporters. Furthermore, he mentioned that no ministerial candidates were named at today’s meeting.
Speaking to local media, the EU Ambassador to Georgia, Paweł Herczyński, said the EU’s annual enlargement report is expected to be published in the second half of October. He also noted that the chance of the European Commission issuing a positive recommendation for the opening of accession talks with Georgia is “highly unlikely” and that the bloc’s positive decision to start accession negotiations with Georgia is “even less likely.
The opposition-leaning media outlets Mtavari TV, Formula TV, and TV Pirveli face heavy fines as they refuse to air the ruling party’s political ad, which juxtaposes war-torn Ukraine with the peace Georgian Dream offers. “The Ivanishvili-controlled government is putting us in a dilemma – either we broadcast these videos or face heavy fines, which could lead to the suspension of our channels’ operations,” reads the joint statement by the opposition media outlets, accusing the GD of exploiting the tragedy of the Ukrainian people for its political campaign.