Opposition Hails Tycoon’s Stance

Opposition leaders hailed the trend that businessmen themselves started, as they put it, “to publicly speak out against the authorities’ pressure on business.”

Leaders of the Republican, Conservative, Labor and New Rights parties gathered on March 29 to discuss a joint strategy on the eve of a protest rally, which the opposition plans to stage against the authorities’ policies on March 30 in Tbilisi. They also commented on the criticism voiced by influential media and financial tycoon Badri Patarkatsishvili against the authorities.

“Up until now only the opposition was speaking out against the authorities’ pressure on business. I hope that the government will somehow improve in this regard if the businessmen themselves will start speaking about it,” Tina Khidasheli of the Republican Party said.

“We will always oppose the authorities’ attempts to establish an authoritarian regime where there is no free business and media,” MP Koba Davitashvili, leader of the Conservative Party said.

Influential parliamentarian from the ruling National Movement party Giga Bokeria denounced the criticism of Badri Patarkatsishvili as an attempt to blackmail authorities and described the tycoon as “an opposition leader and apparent sponsor of the opposition.”

“The opposition does not receive any money from Patarkatsishvili, although we will accept finances from him if there is such a proposal,” MP Pikria Chikhradze of the New Rights party said.

This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)