Ruling party Sec Gen challenges opposition to contest local elections

Kakha Kaladze, the Mayor of Tbilisi and Secretary General of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Monday challenged the domestic opposition parties to participate in the upcoming local self-government elections, stating “let them take part in the local self-government elections and we will see who has a chance, who will win”.

In his remarks, Kaladze emphasised the scale of projects implemented in the capital city of Tbilisi over recent years, noting that such progress was unprecedented.

“I’ve said it before and I’ll repeat it again: while there have been successful individuals and initiatives in the past, I don’t recall projects of this scale being carried out in Tbilisi since 2017. All of this is the achievement of the Georgian Dream [party]”, he said.

When asked about the opposition United National Movement party's negative stance on local elections, Kaladze dismissed the issue as irrelevant, stating he had no interest in engaging in a debate on the matter.

“UNM is a radical group. I have no interest in discussing whether they or any other political party will take part in the elections. The Georgian Dream has already started preparing for the election campaign. There are many challenges both in the capital and in the regions that require serious responses and specific project proposals outlining what will be done in the coming years and how people’s lives will improve”, Kaladze noted.

He further commented on the state of the opposition, claiming it remains deeply tied to the UNM.

“The opposition is essentially a fragmented unity, cobbled together from various political groups. Many of these figures originally emerged from within the UNM, and later tried to distance themselves from the party as if they had no connection. It was an attempt to mislead the public. But if you analyse them individually, their roots trace back to the same dirty, criminal organisation that governed the country until 2012 - the United National Movement. That’s the reality”, Kaladze concluded.