Maia Kopaleishvili, the representative of the President in the Constitutional Court, states that the conclusion of the Constitutional Court regarding the impeachment of the President was as expected and in line with its ongoing trend and that the court has come entirely under political influence.
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‘’The conclusion fits the trend. I want to say it straight, the Constitutional Court fully echoed the opinion of the authors of the constitutional submission word-for–word. Did not even bother to alter the wording, just sprinkled it with legal jargon, and adjudged the President’s jurisdiction in foreign relations entirely under Subsection ‘A’ of Article 52.
Effectively, with this conclusion, the Constitutional Court completely entered the political process. It did formulate the legal argumentation in its own terms in its justification of the decision, however, if you look at this justification, you will clearly see that the Constitutional Court bases its arguments on a point of view - it is hoping that the Parliament does not reach a final decision,’’ said Maya Kopaleishvili.
Maia Kopaleishvili was herself a member of the Constitutional Court from 2009-2019. In her words, those judges who supported the conclusion that the President violated the Constitution interpreted the norms of the Constitution incorrectly.
‘’I honestly expected more from the Constitutional Court. I really believed that the Constitutional Court would rise above mere political influences and make a fair decision, precisely by correctly interpreting the norms of the Constitution instead of opting for an ‘easy way out’ by regarding all activities of the President related to foreign relations, like letters, telephone conversations, etc. as subject to government approval, which is completely ridiculous. The Constitutional Court directly reflected the language and goals that motivated the authors of the submission for impeachment,’’ Maia Kopaleishvili noted.
On October 16, the Constitutional Court published its decision, which established that the President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili, violated the Constitution by holding meetings with the leaders of the EU countries without the government's consent. Judges Merab Turava, Eva Gotsiridze, Giorgi Tevdorashvili, Khvicha Kikilashvili, Manana Kobakhidze, and Vasil Roinishvili supported the decision, while Irine Imerlishvili, Giorgi Kverenchkhiladze, and Teimuraz Tughushi dissented.
According to the chairman of the Georgian Dream party, Irakli Kobakhidze, the vote on the issue of impeachment of the president will be held in the parliament this week.
100 MP’s votes are needed to unseat the President, which the Georgian Dream comes short of. Part of the parliamentary opposition opposes the impeachment of the president and considers it a sabotage and an artificial obstacle to the country’s European integration.
