Georgia’s ruling party Sec Gen: opposition's Parliament recognition irrelevant, public opinion matters most

Kakha Kaladze, the Mayor of Tbilisi and Secretary General of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Tuesday commented on the recent arrests of opposition leaders, emphasising that violating the law was inevitably triggering a state response.

In his remarks, Kaladze noted that those arrested had deliberately violated the law by refusing to appear before a parliamentary investigative commission.

“If we break the law, we must also understand that the state will respond accordingly”, the official said.

“Being a politician does not place anyone above the law - on the contrary, we bear even greater responsibility before the public. Violations must not be tolerated”, Kaladze continued.

He further added that all Government officials must respect the constitution and legal framework.

In response to a journalist’s question on why the opposition members were being detained despite not recognising the Parliament’s legitimacy, Kaladze dismissed the relevance of their stance.

“For me, and I’m sure for my teammates as well, what matters is not whether they recognise the Parliament. What matters is what the Georgian people recognise. The majority of our citizens supported the Georgian Dream party”, he stressed.

Kaladze further claimed that the opposition was made up of a radical minority group that was operating under foreign influence.

“This small radical group is completely guided by external forces. Therefore, it really makes no difference what they think or recognise”, Kaladze concluded.