“We saw foreign flags being waved, calls to be seen by others, a desire for someone abroad to see a photograph and offer their approval. That is “Natsoba,” the ideology of the United National Movement,” declared Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili.

He added that Georgia deserves a better opposition.

“It is telling that at the very moment society is celebrating independence and sovereignty, the radical opposition is once again occupied with vassal-like behaviour to carry out the instructions of foreigners. We have spoken of this often, and in recent times they themselves have let slip on more than one public occasion that they organise such events to be seen by others, to have their numbers counted, so that their patronage may continue.

On Independence Day, the radical opposition and their supporters, the people we saw out on the streets, take to the stage with the rallying cry of subordinating the country to others. We saw foreign flags being waved; we heard their appeals to be noticed, for someone abroad to see a photograph and offer their praise. That is ‘Natsoba’ as an ideology. This is not merely a matter of party affiliation; it is an ideology of servitude to others. These are the same people who, on October 4, took to the streets with the backing of the European Commission’s spokesperson in an attempt to bring the country down. The same people, with the same motivation: to subordinate the country to someone else. Once again, we saw that this amounts to a single Facebook friends list, that is the full measure of their strength and energy. In a country of four million people, a few thousand individuals ought to realise that the vast multitude they believe themselves to be on social media is, in reality, the meagre handful we witnessed yesterday on Rustaveli Avenue.

Yesterday was truly a watershed moment. The lesson from yesterday is clear: Georgia truly deserves a better opposition, one that is dynamic and forward-looking, rather than the outdated remnants of the United National Movement. These entrenched figures appear trapped in the past, with their only goal being to subordinate Georgia to the political influence of external powers.

In the end, their support, their energy, and their ideas were laid bare for all to see. Their support comes from abroad, their idea is to ingratiate themselves with foreign patrons, and their numbers amount to a few thousand,” Papuashvili declared.