Member of parliamentary majority Alexandre Erkvania announced on December 10 of his plans to quit the ruling Georgian Dream party, naming recent developments in politics and the Georgian Orthodox Church as the reason behind his decision.
Erkvania said today that the country is facing “serious problems and stagnation,” and that “political and economic crises are deepening daily,” amid “the fight for power and personal welfare.” According to him, “most devastating is the ongoing fight against [the Georgian Orthodox] church.”
He noted that the Georgian Dream chairperson Bidzina Ivanishvili “has demanded to break taboos from the church affairs and make criticism against the Patriarch [Ilia II] acceptable.”
The lawmaker also noted that the ruling party is promoting “the haters” of the church and the Patriarch Ilia II on various positions, and labeling “the defenders of dignity and morality as … marginals,” and is endorsing “propaganda of immoral and debauchery life in the country.”
Erkvania entered the Georgian Parliament in 2016 through Georgian Dream’s party list. Earlier, he worked as a private lawyer. The former ruling party member plans to continue his parliamentary activities as an independent lawmaker.
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