The heat is on in Georgia. The president refuses to leave office at the end of her mandate

TBILISI - Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili said today that she wants to stay in office after her mandate ends in mid-December. Reuters reported. The current parliament, which is due to vote for her successor, is not legitimate, the president said. Zurabishvili has refused to accept the results of October's parliamentary elections and accused Russia of interfering in the vote.

The ruling Georgian Dream party secured its stay in power for another term in the elections at the end of October. It won 54% of the vote, a result disputed by the opposition. Opposition parties and Western organisations point out that the vote was marred by significant irregularities. Zurabishvili has also rejected the results of the vote and has asked the Constitutional Court to annul them.

"An illegitimate parliament cannot elect my successor," the president said. "My mandate continues until the legitimately elected parliament meets," she said, according to Reuters. Zurabishvili said the presidency is now the only legitimate institution in Georgia.

In 2017, the Georgian parliament passed a reform that abolished the direct election of the head of state. The president will now be chosen by electors, including members of parliament.

This week, MPs from the ruling Georgian Dream party voted to keep Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze in office. This was done at a meeting that was not convened by the President, as required by law. Zurabishvili described the meeting as unconstitutional because the Constitutional Court had not ruled on her objections. The opposition also refused to attend the meeting.

The country has been the scene of protests in recent weeks against the policies of the ruling Georgian Dream, which critics say is bringing the country into Russia's sphere of influence. People on the ground told DPA that the demonstration on Friday evening and night was the biggest yet. Protests continued this evening, AFP reported, with several thousand people at the demonstration.

idnes.cz / photo: Giorgi Abdaladze - wikipedia commons / gnews.cz-jav