Georgian PM: UNM, allies will “face judgement” even if they secure seats in elections

Georgia’s Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on Friday said the United National Movement and its “affiliated” opposition political groups would “not be able to evade legal proceedings” over its  past actions during time in government even if they secured seats in the upcoming parliamentary elections in October.

At a briefing at the ruling Georgian Dream party’s Tbilisi office, Kobakhidze, who also leads the GD election office, stressed “no one can escape prosecution for the crimes they have committed, regardless of surpassing the election threshold”.

The official highlighted the alleged crimes committed by UNM during its tenure from 2004 to 2012, as well as its actions in opposition over the past 12 years, and claimed GD and an alliance of opposition parties were expected to surpass the five percent threshold in the vote.

Two months ago, polls showed the UNM with 10 percent voter approval. No other opposition party, except for the UNM, had the resources to cross the election threshold. The ongoing efforts to unify the opposition are related to this reality. I believe that with high probability, at least two entities will enter the next Parliament - GD and one opposition coalition”,he claimed.

The PM reaffirmed that securing a constitutional majority of at least 113 seats in the 150-member Parliament would enable GD to “address the national problem”, in reference to the ruling party’s announced plans for prosecuting UNM. He claimed the outstanding issue had hindered the development of domestic democratic and political systems.

Labelling the forthcoming elections “critically important”, Kobakhidze stressed it was a “decisive referendum”, with a choice between “war and peace”, and urged the public to choose the latter.