Grigol Gegelia: It is absurd that they accuse us of terrorism while they themselves stand alongside Hezbollah and Hamas; by seeking to ban political parties, Georgian Dream is writing its own indictment and will be judged by the very sword it wields

“The process of banning political parties is a process of banning a free Georgia,” Grigol Gegelia, Foreign Secretary of Lelo - Strong Georgia, stated during an appearance on PalitraNews’ program Polit-City.

According to him, what matters most to Bidzina Ivanishvili, founder and honorary chairman of Georgian Dream, is maintaining an optical illusion of political diversity, but not allowing an opposition capable of replacing Ivanishvili to exist.

“I believe that what is happening today at the Constitutional Court concerns every Georgian. The process of banning political parties is a process of banning a free Georgia. One million Georgians are being told that the choice they made is unconstitutional and that at least one million Georgians will have to choose, in the next election, between the political forces that Bidzina Ivanishvili allows to exist.

What matters to Ivanishvili is maintaining an optical illusion of political diversity, but not allowing an opposition capable of replacing him to exist. He is banning these parties because five opposition forces in particular have demonstrated a significant capacity and potential to mobilise votes. In the elections that they themselves rigged, we received nearly one million votes, and in reality, even more. This poses a threat to the regime,” Gegelia said.

Speaking on the same subject, Grigol Gegelia noted that Georgian Dream would be unable to bring forward a single accusation against its political opponents that it had not itself committed.

“Today, Georgian Dream is writing its own indictment, while Roinishvili and Sharmanashvili are putting themselves on trial. This is because absolutely everything they accuse us of has been committed by them – by this regime. Who is committing sabotage? Who is attempting to overthrow Georgia’s constitutional order in the interests of a foreign power? Georgian Dream is doing all of this. This regime is doing everything possible to prevent Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic integration from becoming a reality.

And as for them talking to us about terrorism, it is absurd – they themselves stand alongside Hezbollah and Hamas. They cannot bring a single accusation against their political opponents that they have not themselves committed. Georgian Dream will be judged by the very sword it wields, and every trap it has set for our nation and our Georgian state will ultimately ensnare them. But the Georgian people will continue moving forward!” the politician stated.

Asked by the host whether the ruling party’s decision to file a lawsuit with the Constitutional Court could be a response to criticism coming from the West, Gegelia replied that this was precisely Ivanishvili’s response to external pressure: damaging Georgia in retaliation.

“Ivanishvili is a man who is capable of bargaining with each and every one of you over your lives and your future. He is now simply demonstrating his power to Europe, saying, ‘You did not accept me as your ruler? Now I will show you what I will do to the parties that support you.’ That is what he is saying.

This is not a new approach; he has followed the same logic before. He responds to external pressure by damaging Georgia. He is bargaining with the fate of our people, our economy and our state institutions. He wants to damage everything that represents a centre of power. Ivanishvili wants to be the only sun shining in the sky.

That is why he attacked the Patriarchate, and I am referring to the cyanide case. Yes, the cyanide case was orchestrated by him. He is the first Georgian leader who dared and managed, to a certain extent, to weaken the Church and its authority,” Gegelia said.

According to him, declaring political parties unconstitutional is complete nonsense and will be the final straw, after which Bidzina Ivanishvili will have no way back.

“Banning political parties will be the final straw, after which Ivanishvili will reach the point of no return. He will no longer have the option of turning back. If this involved banning one or two insignificant parties that nobody knew, that would be a different matter. But we are talking about five parties with more than one million voters combined.

The public knows us well and knows that we have done nothing illegal. Therefore, banning these parties is complete nonsense, something they cannot even explain to their own voters.

Sharmanashvili has been absent from the court proceedings in recent days because the entire country saw his ‘UNM affiliation’. The prosecutor who covered up the Shavadze case, Roinishvili, is sitting there today judging me. He is not just putting me on trial; he is putting one million Georgians on trial. What is being attacked today is freedom of choice and freedom of will.

What they are doing now constitutes an extremely serious crime, for which they will inevitably face both legal and political responsibility,” Grigol Gegelia explained.

Speaking about future plans and their strategy, Gegelia said they would certainly continue their political activities and use every possible form of resistance.

“We do not know what our legal and organisational status will be, but we know that we will fight using every available means and continue our political activities. If this lawsuit is upheld, we will end up with a country where democracy has been completely abolished. They will create fictitious opposition parties, but none of them will be capable of peacefully replacing Ivanishvili’s power.

Ultimately, we will end up in a Russian swamp where no investor will want to enter. After all these years of struggle, the values of our state will ultimately be destroyed,” Gegelia said.