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Saakashvili’s State of Nation Address

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President Saakashvili delivered annual state of the nation address in Parliament, followed by remarks of ruling party MPs and rebuttal speeches by parliamentary minority lawmakers.

Key points of President Saakashvili’s address:

After a short break following the President’s 90-minute long address, lawmakers from the parliamentary minority and majority groups took the floor:

MP Petre Mamradze (who is not a member of a formal parliamentary minority group) of ex-PM Zurab Nogaideli’s Movement for Fair Georgia said he was not in the list of speakers, although he had requested. Parliamentary Chairman, Davit Bakradze, told him that his request was submitted too late and it was not possible to arrange his inclusion in the list of speakers. After that MP Mamradze walked out of the chamber.     

In her speech MP Magda Anikashvili of Christian-Democratic Movement (a leading party in the parliamentary minority group) mainly spoke on social issues, focusing on socially vulnerable people and need for setting clear criteria for identifying such people, so that to rule out situation wherein some might be excluded from the list of those eligible for state assistance. She proposed free healthcare for children under 7 years old. She said “price limits” should be established on major medicines.

MP Guram Chakhvadze of National-Democratic Movement (member of parliamentary minority) told the President that only a narrow circle of people associated with the government benefit from the authorities’ economic policies. He also called on the President “to stand above your [ruling] party interest” and be a guarantor of holding free and fair elections.

MP Dimitri Lortkipanidze, an individual member of parliamentary minority, raised issue of high-profile murder cases in which officials were alleged to be either involved or trying to cover them up.

MP Jondi Bagaturia, leader of Georgian Troupe also focused on social issues and among other things called on the President to increase minimal monthly pensions to GEL 150; write-off debt accumulated as result unpaid communal tariffs; he also called on the President to say no to “zero tolerance”, which he said led to prison overcrowding.

MP Giorgi Tsagareishvili listed names of those opposition activists and supporters who were attacked and beaten at the time when street protest rallies were ongoing in Tbilisi. “Who were those people committing those crimes? I will hand this list to you and look through this list of these people who were attacked,” MP Tsagareishvili said. He also demanded from the President to make his special fund transparent.

In his speech MP Pavle Kublashvili of the ruling party called on the opposition politicians not to focus only on negative and “also to note the positive deeds that is being done in the country.” He said it would an expression of high political culture.   

MP Gia Tortladze, leader of Democratic Party of Georgia and a member of parliamentary minority, started his speech with condemning “collaborationism” of some opposition leaders – referring to ex-PM Zurab Nogaideli’s Movement for Fair Georgia party – with the Russian occupying force. “It must be condemned by everyone in Georgia,” MP Tortladze said. In his speech MP Tortladze also criticized France for its plans to sell warship to Russia. “If it happens my party will launch protest rallies outside [the French] embassy,” he said. He welcomed “positive trends” in the judicially system.  

MP Giorgi Akhvlediani of Christian-Democratic Movement welcomed the initiative to provide tax amnesty to television stations in the provinces. He, however, told the President that he had failed “to establish the Georgian statehood.” He said that because of wrong economic policies number of socially vulnerable people had increased. He also criticized the President for not introducing direct mayoral elections in other major cities of Georgia;

MP Giorgi Gabashvili of the ruling party said the opposition lawmakers’ speeches “lacked arguments” and were “totally inappropriate.” “Debates should be more fact-based,” he said. Apparently alluding to Nogaideli’s party he said that there still were “forces” in Georgia, which “do not want the country’s independent development course.”

MP Giorgi Targamadze, leader of Christian-Democratic Movement and of parliamentary minority said that President Saakashvili created system in which he ruled the country unilaterally. He said on foreign policy front there are series of failures and cited closure of OSCE and UN missions. He also said planned reopening of Zemo Larsi-Kazbegi border crossing point with Russia was a source of concern. “There is crisis of values in the opposition,” he said. “But there is even bigger crisis within the authorities, which have no values at all,” he said and added that Nogaideli served for years as PM in the Saakashvili’s administration. He also told Saakashvili: “Distance from the ruling party and be the President of each citizen of Georgia.” He offered to decrease defense spending at a level of GDP’s 3%. “It will help to save GEL 170 million, which will be enough for business stimulus projects,” he said. He also told the President: “You have turned your back on democracy.”

In his closing remarks President Saakashvili said:

This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian)