Opposition MP calls on colleagues unwilling to work to leave parliament “in good time”
Ioseliani was responding to Giorgi Vashadze, the leader of the opposition Strategy Agmashenebeli party, who on Tuesday said his party was “ready” to leave the parliament. Photo: Parliament of Georgia
Tweet 
Share
Levan Ioseliani, a member of the Citizens opposition party and the vice speaker of the Georgian parliament, on Wednesday called on MPs who did not want to be involved in the work of the lawmaking body to leave the parliament “in good time”, following a statement by an opposition leader about intentions of his party to abandon seats.
Ioseliani was responding to Giorgi Vashadze, the leader of the opposition Strategy Agmashenebeli party, who on Tuesday said his party was “ready” to leave the parliament.
Vashadze said the possibility was being discussed within the party and said the decision was being deliberated on as “it is unbearable to be in the same environment as pro-Russians”, in reference to the ruling parliamentary majority.
Vashadze has not attended the parliament for a long time. Therefore, if he leaves the parliament, I only welcome it, because those who do not go to the parliament and do not work should not receive the salary and privilege that a member of the parliament has”, Ioseliani said.
Irakli Kadagishvili, the chair of the Georgian parliament's rules and procedural issues committee, on Wednesday said the domestic opposition was “very confused” about steps it should take on the backdrop of political development in the country in its European Union integration process.
Levan Ioseliani, a member of the Citizens opposition party and the vice speaker of the Georgian parliament, on Monday said the opposition United National Movement party was “collapsing” and finding it “difficult to make decisions” without the imprisoned former president Mikheil Saakashvili.
A “certain part” of the domestic opposition is using the 12-point conditions outlined by the European Council for granting Georgia the European Union membership candidate status later this year for the objective of “deepening polarisation” in the domestic political environment, Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili said on Wednesday.
Levan Ioseliani, a member of the Citizens opposition party and the Vice Speaker of the Parliament, on Tuesday said the domestic opposition should work with the proposals presented by the ruling Georgian Dream party for fulfilling the European Union’s conditions for obtaining the membership candidate status later this year in addition to presenting its own vision.
Giorgi Vashadze, the chair of the Strategy Agmashenebeli opposition party, on Wednesday proposed holding primary voting among “pro-European” opposition groups with the objective of identifying the most popular figures that would comprise a joint list of candidates for the opposition in the 2024 parliamentary elections in the country.
Levan Ioseliani, a member of the Citizens opposition party and the vice speaker of the Georgian parliament, will attend the United States midterm elections as an observer next week.