UNM split “inevitable” due to “profound crisis” - opposition MP
The lawmaker noted she expected other members to follow suit and leave the party, and added “the division may serve as a necessary step for UNM to overcome its crisis”. Photo: Parliament press office
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Khatuna Samnidze, an MP from the Republican opposition party, on Monday said the departure of nine members from the United National Movement party earlier during the day was a symptom of an “inevitable split” caused by a “profound crisis” in the largest opposition group.
Samnidze’s statement came on the heels of UNM members in capital Tbilisi and the western city of Batumi leaving the faction citing “irreconcilable differences” with the current management of the party and its Chair Levan Khabeishvili.
In her comments, the lawmaker noted she expected other members to follow suit and leave the party, and added “the division is regrettable, but it may serve as a necessary step for UNM to overcome its crisis”.
She also said Nika Melia, the former Chair of UNM, might soon announce his separation from the party, possibly paving the way for creation of a new political entity.
Nine members of the United National Movement opposition in the country’s western city of Batumi on Monday announced their exit from the faction, citing “irreconcilable differences” and an alleged lack of prospects for unity under the current management.
Six members of the United National Movement opposition party in Tbilisi City Assembly on Friday called for termination of the position of the Chair of the group before next year’s “crucial” parliamentary elections and proposed establishment of a temporary governing body based on “parity”.
Levan Khabeishvili, the Chair of United National Movement, the largest party in the domestic Georgian opposition, on Monday signed a paper during live broadcasting while claiming Nika Melia, the party’s former Chairperson, “no longer represents” the faction, but refrained from using the term “expulsion” in an ongoing controversy over the matter.
Nika Melia, the incumbent Chair of United National Movement, the largest opposition party in Georgia, on Monday lost the race for the position to Levan Khabeishvili, in an election that followed intra-party controversies over the recent weeks.