"Chur, I'm the first!"

In old age, I don’t even remember how many children's games this phrase sounded. The fact is only that the action has always passed in the yard. Oddly enough, the current Georgian authorities have now remembered these games, only from the space of the school yard they transferred them to a wider space - to the constitutional field. In revenge, the victim was defeated by the “national movement”, whose leader Mikhail Saakashvili, when the President of the country, crushed all the structures of power and actually solely ruled Georgia, the current rulers in the legislative way limited the functions of the head of state that he became not even a representative, but an era-to-mythical figure.

It began with the curiosity: the oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili, which led to the authorities of the Political Coalition "The Georgian Dream", as if by chance dropped the phrase that the first lady of the country is not the civil wife of the current president George Margvelashvili, but the wife of Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili. The confused media in their messages, depending on the context, mentioned one or the other in no guilty spouse. Dashing trouble began. If the President takes an active part in the "event", then members of the government often ignore him (both the event and the president). So it was, for example, during an important report by Margvelashvili at a meeting of the Georgian parliament. Accordingly, the president does not come to the official receptions of the government, and for the most part they do not send him invitations.

The violinist Isaac Stern was asked what he thinks about David Ostrakh. Stern said: "Ostrakh, undoubtedly, the second violinist in the world!" - "Well, who is the first?" - "Oh, the first a lot!"

The curiosity gradually turns into a bad joke: French President Francois Hollande, who arrived in Tbilisi for one day, had to visit two official dinners. At the dinner, Margvelashvili did not have members of the government, and on the feast of Garibashvili - the president. A few days later, the ambassador of one of the countries, which completed his mission in Georgia, paid a farewell visit to the president, but again to the Prime Minister.

A desperate dispute broke out about who exactly will sign an agreement on associative membership in the European Union on behalf of Georgia. Do not forget that we are talking about an extremely important document for the country. The head of state is the president. And here, once again, the government played the game "Chur, I am the first!" Prime Minister Garibashvili said that he would sign the contract. After short political bickering, they decided ...

The "spiteful" bike of the Soviet era comes to mind: the American violinist Isaac Stern was asked what he thinks about David Oistrach. After a short pause, Stern said: "Ostrakh, undoubtedly, the second violinist in the world!" - "Well, who is the first?" - "Oh, the first a lot!"

And what about the people? This is not to say that he is silent. The problem of unemployment, high utility services, public transport, low pensions - this is what is worried about the Georgian society, discussions are underway on the forums, in the press, on television. Judging by interactive surveys, ordinary citizens are of little concern to the surnames and status of those in power, it does not matter to them who will be the first and who is the second in the power pyramid. Political games are full of throat.

Yuri Vachnadze - Tbilisi publicist and political commentator