16/7 Tass 77
SUKHUM, July 16 (Itar-Tass) — Abkhazian Prime Minister Sergei Shamba confirmed that he would run for presidency.
Shamil Adzinba, deputy chairman of the State Committee for Youth Affairs and Sports, said he would run for vice-presidency.
The initiative group nominating Shamba has submitted to the CEC candidacy lists and a report of a meeting on the results of the signatures collection.
The candidates shall take the Abkhazian language proficiency examination.
Three candidates have been nominated to run for Abkhazia’s presidency. Among them are incumbent Vice President Alexander Ankvaba, Prime Minister Sergei Shamba and opposition leader Raul Khadzhimba.
The presidential elections in Abkhazia will be held on August 26.
Earlier this month, Abkhazia’s Central Election Commission registered a political party, “Forum for People’ s Unity of Abkhazia”.
On July 2, the party’s Political Council took a decision to support the nomination of Raul Khadzhimba for presidency and Svetlana Dzhergeniya for vice-presidency.
On June 28, the Central Election Commission registered the initiative group, which nominated Khadzhimba for presidency. He was Abkhazia’s vice-president from 2005 to 2009.
Svetlana Dzhergeniya is a widow of the republic’s first president, chairwoman of its fund and senior research assistant of the department for political science and conflict resolution of the Abkhazian Institute for Humanitarian Studies.
The presidential elections in Abkhazia are expected to take place on August 26 due to the death of President Sergei Bagapsh on May 29. Bagapsh had a right lung surgery at the 83rd clinical hospital of the Federal Medical and Biological Agency on May 21, and the doctors said the operation was successful. Yet the condition of Bagapsh seriously exacerbated in the recent days and he was connected to an artificial lung ventilation system. Problems with other organs appeared on Saturday. The doctors failed to bring Bagapsh out of a coma.