Ruling party Executive Secretary accuses President of being ‘opposition’s puppet’

Mamuka Mdinaradze, Executive Secretary of the ruling Georgian Dream party, accused President Salome Zourabichvili on Tuesday of becoming the opposition’s puppet, claiming she was receiving instructions from unspecified foreign forces.

Mdinaradze responded to the announcement by six opposition parties of the formation of the Unity Declaration ahead of the October general elections. He alleged that the “radical wing” of the domestic opposition, reportedly united under the United National Movement party, was acting under foreign influence and directing the President.The six Georgian opposition parties announced on Tuesday that they had united under a “Declaration of Unity” by signing the President-offered Georgian Charter. The charter emphasizes the country’s aspiration to join Euro-Atlantic structures and promotes unity for common goals before and after the October 26 general elections.

The United National Movement, Girchi-More Freedom, Lelo, Ahali, Droa, and Strategy Agmashenebeli are among the signatories of the declaration, which aims to consolidate efforts to secure victory in the upcoming parliamentary elections and maintain unity post-elections.