Influential MP from the ruling National Movement party Giga Bokeria said on August 22 that the Georgian opposition leaders are holding closed-door consultations with media and financial tycoon Badri Patarkatsishvili and his partner, London-based mogul Boris Berezovsky.
Speaking at a news conference, Bokeria said that leaders of the opposition New Rights Party MP Davit Gamkrelidze and MP Pikria Chikhradze have already met with Patarkatsishvili in London and the leaders of the Republican, Conservative and Freedom parties are planning to do the same.
He alleged that two issues are being discussed with Patarkatsishvili: potential financing of opposition parties on the eve of local self-governance elections scheduled for December, and the possibility of nominating Patarkatsishvili as the opposition?s single candidate for the post of Tbilisi Mayor.
Officials from the New Rights party said in early August that they were more in favor of nominating a non-partisan candidate, such as ex-State Minister for Conflict Resolution Issues Giorgi Khaindrava or Badri Patarkatsishvili, to run in the elections.
?Issues of greater or lesser importance for Georgia should not be solved outside Georgia with the participation of Patarkatsishvili and Berezovsky… Consultations of this kind should not be carried out behind society?s back,? MP Bokeria said.
This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)