Ex-Pres. Saakashvili “won’t escape justice” if he decides to withdraw from politics - ruling party MP

If the imprisoned former President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili decides to withdraw from politics, the move will “in no way” lead to his release from prison, Mikheil Sarjveladze, an MP from the ruling Georgian Dream party, said on Monday in response to comments by Saakashvili’s lawyers about his alleged plans to leave the political scene to “look after his health”.

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Sarjveladze, who chairs the Parliament's Human Rights Committee, suggested that “it is completely up to Saakashvili to decide on his political goals”, noting that “someone may try to trade with this topic [with the Government]”. 

Saakashvili is making no impact on Georgian politics. He thought that his return to Georgia would have made changes. However, he was mistaken. Saakashvili’s presence or absence in Georgian politics has no genuine importance”, Sarjveladze said. 

Vice - Parliament Speaker from the ruling party, Gia Volksi, said last week that Saakashvili was serving his term as he had “committed crimes and not because he is or is not in politics”. 

Saakashvili was  arrested in Tbilisi on October 1, 2021, ahead of Georgia's municipal elections. He went on hunger strike on the same day, which lasted several weeks. video grab. 

Saakashvili’s lawyers, Valeri Gelbakhiani and Shalva Khachapuridze suggested last week that the former President, who was arrested in Tbilisi in October 2021 after eight years in political exile, had plans to withdraw from politics due to his “poor health”. 

The members of Saakashvili’s United National Movement opposition party slammed the lawyers for “making political statements”, with the party chair, Nika Melia, noting that it “could be the lawyers’ strategy” to help the defendant, while Saakashvili would remain an “integral part” of the UNM. 

Saakashvili, who currently holds Ukrainian citizenship and took a public post in Ukraine before being arrested in Tbilisi, claimed he returned to help the UNM take office again “via elections”. 

However, the current Government said that Saakashvili and his “destructive opposition” had plans to overthrow the current state leadership.

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The former President is now serving his six-year term for abuse of authority while in office, and is facing several other charges.