Former PM to come back to lead Georgia's ruling party

TBILISI, April 26 (Xinhua) -- Former Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili will return as the leader of the ruling Georgian Dream party, Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili announced on Thursday.

"Bidzina Ivanishvili founded the party in one of the hardest times for the country. The party has played a crucial role in the state's democratic development," said Giorgi Kvirikashvili at a news briefing in Tbilisi.

The prime minister added that he had asked Ivanishvili to return and lead the party again and Ivanishvili accepted it.

"I am sure that the party will unanimously elect Bidzina Ivanishvili as the new chairman of the party," Kvirikashvili said.

According to him, the party's political council meeting is planned to be held in a few days which will be followed by a congress meeting where party members will vote for a new chairman.

Incumbent Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili has been serving as the chairman of the ruling Georgian Dream-Democratic Georgia party since May 2016.

Georgian tycoon Bidzina Ivanishvili founded the Georgian Dream party in 2012 to oppose Mikheil Saakashvili's United National Movement party in Georgia's parliamentary elections of 2012.

The Georgian Dream coalition won with 54 percent of the votes in the parliamentary election that year.

He then served as the prime minister of Georgia from October 2012 to November 2013 and resigned as he had promised during his election campaign. Enditem