The Not-So Plasticine President
On April 7, President Giorgi Margvelashvili will give his annual speech in the Parliament of Georgia, a speech postponed from February 7. Whether the governmental officials will attend and listen to the President in Kutaisi is still unclear, but it seems that the ex-Prime Minister's tradition of ignoring the President is still relevant and Kvirikashvili's government is loath to neglect it. The only thing agreed so far and that won’t change is the format - the President will be invited to debate by the ruling party.
Margvelashvili will be travelling to Kutaisi with even more restricted rights, but with higher ratings. The latest IRI study suggests the President’s current trust coefficient is only behind that of the Patriarch of all Georgia and, at 67%, is higher than any other politician in the country, including the Prime Minister and the Head of Parliament. Concerning his rights, some two weeks ago, Parliament voted for a legislation which deprives the President from the right to present the Supreme Court judges, and as of now this honorable mission will be taken over by the Supreme Council of Justice. Even before that, the President was stripped of the right to sign important international documents. Apparently, the ruling party believes that President Margvelashvili’s authority should be limited to laying wreaths on graves and visiting various monuments. Therefore, it is not surprising that the government has no desire to listen to him.
Last year, PM Kvirikashvili did attend the President’s annual speech in Parliament, though his arrival in Kutaisi was more an obligation than appreciation for the President’s institution. Further, his example did not drive other members of the cabinet to do likewise, which made Kvirikashvili’s fervor look even more pathetic. Now the situation has changed to such an extent, and the confrontation between President and the Georgian Dream is so intense, that it is quite unlikely that Mr. Kvirikashvili will be bold enough to repeat last year’s move. The Premier has his own problems and, as the rumors claim, his own days and those of his government are numbered.
The formerly praised Giorgi Margvelashvili, who was described as “a very good President” by billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, unexpectedly became a persona non grata for his own team shortly after taking on the President’s post. This became apparent especially after Ivanishvili publicly stated that Mr. Margvelashvili had radically changed, and was showing certain stubbornness. This also shattered the myth about the President’s ‘plasticity.’ Before coming to the government, Mr. Margvelashvili compared his character to plasticine, illustrating that he was not as stubborn and unapproachable as Mikheil Saakashvili. As time passed after his decision to move to the Presidential Palace in Avlabari, we witnessed Margvelashvili’s rigidness, and the fact that he was a man of principle came into question. Where before becoming the President he was completely against moving into the residence, and even talked about giving up the building to students, reality developed otherwise.
Almost everyone is confident that the main candidate for the future presidential elections will be Margvelashvili again and that he is far from thinking about retirement. Political experts suggest he has a bouquet of facts that support him in this endeavor, starting from his age and education, and ending with political experience and insight. The oppositional parties are confident that Georgian Dream will turn April 7 into Judgment Day for the President, trying to hit him a deadly blow prior to the most crucial upcoming political events.
In political circles, they say it is precisely President Margvelashvili around whom the third political power will gather and fight for the elections in autumn. The man once praised as ‘a very good President’ by Georgian Dream may now be found among those from the ex-UNM and ex-Republicans, and this could be a way for Mr. Margvelashvili to get revenge on his former team members and prove that he is anything but made of ‘plasticine.’
Zaza Jgarkava