Opposition leader warns of police pressure on business after PM’s call for price checks

An opposition figure has accused the government of abandoning market principles and moving towards direct police intervention in the economy, following Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s call for law enforcement agencies to investigate supermarket pricing.

Khatia Dekanoidze, one of the leaders of the United National Movement, wrote on social media on Wednesday that the authorities were “targeting supermarkets” instead of addressing structural economic issues such as taxation, competition and market regulation.

“The regime has moved against supermarkets. Instead of talking about the economy, market principles or taxes, Kobakhidze is calling on the police to raid markets and examine prices,” Dekanoidze said.

She linked the government’s rhetoric to recent developments in Hungary, noting that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán introduced mandatory profit margin caps for supermarkets on 30 essential food items from March 2025. Those measures apply to large retail chains.

“Apparently, this is the model the regime is following. But Hungary is in the European Union. We are in a swamp of corruption,” Dekanoidze wrote.

She warned that Georgian businesses, which she described as largely silent under political pressure, could now face police inspections and enforced price regulation. She also raised concerns about the media environment, suggesting that financially weakened outlets may be unable to cover potential police raids on retailers.

The comments come after Kobakhidze said food prices in Georgia were significantly higher than in parts of Europe and blamed high mark-ups by distributors and retail chains. He called on law enforcement agencies to study the issue in depth and said antimonopoly mechanisms could be used if necessary.