Journalists assess Raul Khadjimba's chances to win presidential election in Abkhazia

In Abkhazia, potential presidential candidates are not in a hurry to announce their nomination. The incumbent head of state has strong positions, but his victory is not guaranteed; and many voters assess the past five years as years lost for the development of the country, journalists have stated.

On April 4, the Abkhaz parliament appointed the presidential election for July 21. The likely favourites of the election race are the incumbent Raul Khadjimba and the oppositionist, Aslan Bzhaniya.

So far, none of the candidates has published his/her programme, Inal Khashig, the editor-in-chief of the "Chegemskaya Pravda" newspaper, has noted. He is convinced that Khadjimba will nominate himself.

Astamur Tarba, a former chairman of the State Security Service, is an independent candidate. His self-nomination suggests that the society still has some kind of belief that people from the special services can do something constructive for the country, said Khashig.

Mr Khadjimba will definitely nominate himself, but his victory is not guaranteed, Anton Krivenyuk, a journalist, believes. In his opinion, a part of civil servants and budget-funded employees will vote for the incumbent.