Ivanishvili wants to deprive Georgian president of right to appoint governors

Published Nov. 2, 2012 at 11:25 am

Georgia's President Mikhail Saakashvili addresses a newly elected parliament during it's first session in Kutaisi, some 250 km (155 miles) west of Tbilisi, Georgia, Sunday, Oct. 21, 2012. The newly elected parliament holds its first session since an opposition coalition defeated President Mikhail Saakashvili's party and gained the power to install its billionaire leader Bidzina Ivanishvili as prime minister.

Photo by AP

TBILISI - The Georgian government will discuss a bill under which governors in the regions will be appointed by the prime minister, not by the president, on Friday, Georgian Regional Development and Infrastructure Minister David Narmaniya told reporters.

“Governors in the region are representatives of the government. They
coordinate projects implemented by different ministries, and therefore
governors should be appointed by the prime minister, not the president,”
Narmaniya said.

This bill does not envision changes to the constitution and can be passed by the parliament by a majority of votes, he said.

All governors in Georgia were appointed by President Mikheil Saakashvili.