Adjara Supreme Council Chair slams opposition over 26 May rally call

The Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, Tsotne Ananidze, has criticised opposition calls for a large-scale rally on Georgia’s Independence Day, accusing government opponents of lacking a clear political strategy.

Ananidze was responding to remarks by Nika Gvaramia, one of the leaders of the opposition group Coalition for Change, who called on supporters to gather on Rustaveli Avenue on 26 May.

“There must be many in Rustaveli on 26 May. We must decide how we reclaim our homeland, decide together and act together,” Gvaramia said.

In response, Ananidze said the opposition was attempting to shift responsibility for its future political actions onto supporters.

“They have no plan and are pushing responsibility onto the public,” he wrote.

According to Ananidze, the opposition’s message of “deciding together” was aimed at distributing blame in the event of what he described as a future political failure.

“The message ‘let us decide together’ is needed so they can later blame several hundred supporters for another political fiasco,” he said.