Business tycoon and presidential candidate Badri Patarkatsishvili called on acting President Nino Burjanadze to defect from Mikheil Saakashvili.
 
“I call on those politicians, who have a sense of responsibility and in particular on Mrs. Nino Burjanadze, to defect from Saakashvili in order to avoid becoming accomplices to his crimes,” Patarkatsishvili said in a televised address aired on Imedi TV on December 20. 

In November former President and current presidential candidate Mikheil Saakashvili praised Burjanadze, who is currently the acting president, for her “decisiveness.” He said that despite Burjanadze’s natural inclination towards caution and compromise in solving problems, she had supported “the most decisive measures” during the recent unrest in Tbilisi.

Patarkatsishvili also said that Saakashvili’s promises to Georgian citizens, whose standard of living is already extremely low, would, if implemented, lead to the country grinding to a standstill.