According to Paata Manjgaladze, the Strategy Aghmashenebeli party member, the United National Movement has always had a different position from Salome Zourabichvili regarding the pardoning of Mikheil Saakashvili.

“I also think that Saakashvili is a prisoner. My position hasn’t changed depending on who says what, but we must state both facts and arguments. The pardon would have had symbolic significance, but it wouldn’t have produced results, and Saakashvili still wouldn’t have been able to leave prison,” Manjgaladze stated.

The Strategy Aghmashenebeli member commented on the statement by Levan Khabeishvili, one of the UNM leaders, who said: “What is it, guys, why are you clinging to these positions? It’s unimaginable that politicians wouldn’t speak to each other because of ego. If we don’t talk to each other, how could there be a coalition government?”

As Manjgaladze noted, the issue today is not opposition unity but calling new elections. According to him, the opposition is united on the issue of calling new elections.

“I don’t want Levan’s words, which may be correct, to be used for propaganda. I know GD’s propaganda very well – ‘the opposition cannot agree,’ ‘the opposition is weak.’ Let’s say more – they practically have Garibashvili under house arrest and nobody is talking about it, he’s forbidden from appearing on television, and we’re talking about someone not being able to control their ego?

We’re not in unification now but in coordination, this is the first step. The general propaganda line is that ‘the opposition cannot agree,’ ‘the opposition is weak,’ and ‘the opposition is lost’ – meanwhile, when they need to, they’ll tell you with the same narrative that the opposition wants a coup, that they’re barely maintaining peace. If we’re weak, then how are you maintaining peace, how does that fit together? Or – they say these traitors are going and imposing sanctions on us, and the next minute they say the opposition has disappeared. If I’ve disappeared, how am I imposing sanctions on you? Shouldn’t there be some logic? – in the morning they say one thing, in the evening – another.

Today, opposition unity is not the issue at hand; the issue is that new elections should be called, and on this issue, the opposition is united; that the regime should be sanctioned, on this issue it is united, and that the criminals who were dealing with people for ten days, who were violent in the streets, should all be held accountable – on this, we opposition political parties are united,” Paata Manjgaladze declared.