Anri Okhanashvili: If the abolition of the obligation to undergo drug testing for the candidates for deputy should be converted into our idea, I am ready to remove the issue from the project - I don't see a problem, citizens should know who is a drug user and who is not!
If the obligation to pass a drug test for deputy candidates should be converted as if it is the idea of the "Georgian Dream", I am ready to remove the issue from the project altogether - I don't see any problem, our citizens would know who is a drug user and who is not! - The said statement was made by the Chairman of the Legal Affairs Committee, Anri Okhanashvili.
As Okhanashvili explains, the obligation to undergo a preliminary drug test for the candidates for the membership of the parliament, on the one hand, is an echo of the initiative to cancel the drug test obligation for state-political officials, and on the other hand, the parties themselves talked about it.
According to Okhanashvili, "Georgian Dream" has nothing to hide and "everyone in Georgia knows by heart who is under what influence or without influence".
"The issue has been the subject of discussion with opposition colleagues more than once - first, that the procedure for passing a drug test goes beyond any civil form. Secondly, from the point of view of the results, if it is determined that the person was under the influence of drugs, the result is zero - nothing happens and he will still be registered as a deputy candidate. The only thing is that the citizen will have the information about his being under the influence of drugs, and it is the right of the citizen of Georgia to decide for himself what kind of parliament member he wants to see in the Parliament of Georgia", said Anri Okhanashvili.
As for the obligation of state political officials to pass a drug test, Okhanashvili drew attention to the recommendation of the Venice Commission.
"Today, the head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau can oblige high-ranking officials to undergo a drug test. If I'm not mistaken, he never exercised this authority. In this regard, the Venice Commission says that it should be clearly written if there is no legitimate purpose for it or it should be abolished altogether.
In order to leave no room for further speculation, we have deemed it appropriate to cancel it. Secondly, whether it is constitutional and what the consequences will be if a person passes a drug test, this issue is open - in the case of a member of the parliament, it will not lead to anything...", Okhanashvili said.
