Mikheil Saakashvili: It is a lie that Ivanishvili was paying salaries to police officers, soldiers, members of the government and parliament during my time - the only thing we forced him to build was the building of the Sachkhere military unit - they shamelessly continue to spray lies

It is an absolute lie that Ivanishvili was paying salaries to police officers, soldiers, members of the government and parliament during my time; the only thing we forced him to build was the building of the Sachkhere military unit, which was incomparably small – even 14 years after 2012 they continue to shamelessly spray lies, – this is written by the third President of Georgia on social media, thereby responding to the statement by Deputy Speaker of Parliament Giorgi Kakhiiani, according to whom “Ivanishvili was financing the salaries of police officers, the salaries of teachers, and has done countless good deeds for our country.”

As Mikheil Saakashvili notes, Bidzina Ivanishvili was not only not paying salaries, but at one of the meetings he even told him that “such a high salary was not necessary for the patrol and it is enough to give them a certificate and a weapon and they will find the rest themselves.”

“It is an absolute lie that Ivanishvili was paying salaries to police officers, soldiers, members of the government and parliament, etc., during my time; I will tell you even more – at one of the meetings with me he even told me: why do you need such a high salary for the patrol, it is enough to give them a certificate and a weapon and they will find the rest themselves. The typical logic of a Russian oligarch, and at that time I laughed at this.

The only thing we forced him to build was the building of the Sachkhere military unit, which was incomparably small against the background of the huge military units in Gori and Senaki that we built with the budget, and he kept complaining about this. He did not spend a single tetri on anything else – neither on salaries, nor on equipment, nor on buildings.

We, on the other hand, were spending the money that appeared in the budget because we closed the black hole of Ergneti and the government was no longer stealing. Otherwise, since Ivanishvili came, not a single new building has been added to the army and the police, and yet Ivanishvili’s gang has broken off a huge amount of money.

What surprises me more is that even 14 years after 2012 they continue to shamelessly spray lies, and it will be very strange if anyone believes this,” Saakashvili writes.