President Salome Zourabichvili did not sign the amendments to the cumulative pension law, nor did she veto them. Speaker of Parliament Shalva Papuashvili commented that with his signature, the contentious legislative changes would now come into force.
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"We received a letter from President Zourabichvili stating that she neither signed nor returned the law with reasoned remarks, effectively indicating there was no veto and thus no accompanying explanations, as seen in previous vetoes where 'because' arguments were cited. It appears that Ms. Salome's parliamentary secretary chose not to bring forward a 'because' argument this time and simply did not sign.
Therefore, according to the Constitution of Georgia, I will sign this law today during the Bureau session, and it will come into force immediately upon publication," stated Speaker of Parliament Shalva Papuashvili.
The parliament debated the amendments to the cumulative pension law in its third reading on June 27 and passed them with 75 votes: 66 from members of the Georgian Dream faction and 9 from deputies of the ruling party's satellite People's Power'
The adopted law renames the pension agency to the Georgian Pension Fund and incorporates changes to its governance rules. Notably, a new management board will replace the current supervisory and investment board. Under current legislation, members of the Investment Council are elected by Parliament; under the proposed changes, the Prime Minister will appoint and dismiss professional council members. Additionally, an executive body, the Pension Fund Directorate, will be established, with its members appointed and dismissed by the management board. The amendments also allow outsourcing of any pension fund activity, subject to approval by the National Bank.
One of the draft law's authors, Irakli Nadareishvili, asserted that the changes aim to enhance governance and oversight. However, Transparency International - Georgia disagrees, arguing that the amendments weaken the pension fund's independence and oversight, crucial for effective fund management.
"The pension fund currently holds 5 billion GEL, providing pensions for over a million Georgian citizens. The proposed changes jeopardize its independence and increase the risk of investments in politically motivated projects, rather than serving pensioners' interests," stated Transparency International Georgia.
President Zourabichvili criticized the Georgian Dream-initiated law as 'harmful,' cautioning against government control over the pension fund. "What we are witnessing is the government's takeover of the pension fund, a perilous direction," she commented on June 4.
