The pre-election problems in the Paata Burtchuladze’s Political Party

Giorgi Janelidze

Active members left the political party of Paata Burtchuladze  during the pre-election marathon. Nino Kuzanova left the party even after the first assembly of the political movement State for People, which took place in the Tbilisi Sports Palace. Soon several colleagues took her example. 

The number of the people, who quitted the political movement of the world famous opera singer, increased after the movement State for People joined the political parties, such as Girchi, New Rights and New Georgia under one election platform . Dozens people left the Burtchuladze party in Batumi, Kutaisi and Tbilisi. The culmination of the process was on August 19, when journalist Merab Metreveli posted in social media about his intention to leave the party. 

Merab Metreveli informed Facebook users that he will take the final decision after talking to the leader of the party. Initially, he did not mention the reason and asked for time-out for couple of days. “I had frank conversation with Merab. I asked him to think over. I will be very sad, if he leaves us. He will announce his decision on Monday”, - Paata Burtchuladze said. 

On Monday, August 22, Paata Burtchuladze officially informed the journalists that Merab Metreveli will leave the political organization. He said it will be a huge loss for the party. “I would like to wish success to Merab and thank him for his job”, - the leader of the party added. Metreveli wished good luck to his former colleagues and talked generally about the reasons of his decision at the same briefing. 

Merab Metreveli shortly commented to humanrights.ge: “I joined Paata Burtchuladze’s Party, because it was really new force in the political spectrum. It was not composed of former members of the Georgian Dream or the National Movement. The party neither separated, nor left any other political movement. That’s why I agreed to this new force and decided to come to the politics. I lost this element after the party joined others. It was not important and interesting to work with those people for me. If I wanted to be with those people, I would have joined their party”. 

Humanrights.ge tried to contact Khatuna Lagazidze, one of the leaders of the political movement State for People, to discuss the problems in the party, but she did not answer phone calls and messages.