The crisis in Georgia deepened when former football player Kavelashvili was elected president

A former Manchester City footballer will be appointed president on Saturday by Georgia’s disputed parliament, after 16 days of pro-EU protests spread across the country’s towns and cities.

Mikheil Kavelashvili, now 53 years old, is a former lawmaker of the increasingly authoritarian ruling Georgian Dream party and is the only candidate for the post.

Protesters began gathering outside parliament on Saturday morning and demonstrations were planned for later in the day.

The four main opposition groups have rejected Kavelashvili and boycotted parliament, insisting that elections held in October were rigged.

Georgia’s outgoing pro-Western president, Salome Zourabichvili, has denounced Kavelashvili’s election as a farce, insisting that she holds Georgia’s only remaining legitimate institution.

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has accused the president of trying to damage Georgia’s interests, stressing that when her term ends on December 29, she will have to retire.

“We have very strong state institutions, so we certainly have no difficulty in completely controlling the situation,” he said on Friday.

Party colleague Nino Tsilosani told reporters that Zourabichvili was no longer president in the eyes of the public.

Protests against Georgian Dream began shortly after the October election but they exploded on November 28 when the government announced it would suspend EU accession negotiations until 2028.

The vast majority of Georgians support the country’s path to joining the European Union and it is part of the constitution.

Every night, the main avenue outside parliament is filled with protesters flying EU flags, demanding new elections.

Saturday’s vote in parliament is expected to last several hours and cause a spike in anti-government protests. It will include a direct vote by a 300-member electoral college of congressmen and local officials loyal to the Georgian Dream from across the country.

Ahead of the vote, the capital Tbilisi was rocked on Friday by sudden protests involving IT professionals, public sector workers, creative industry professionals, actors and lawyers.

Lawyer Davit Kikaleishvili, 47, said: “We stand here to create a legal state once and for all, respecting the provisions of the constitution and human rights.”

Kavelashvili is the founder of the People Power party, known as the main voice of anti-Western propaganda in Georgia.

He accused opposition parties of acting as a “fifth column” directed from abroad and described President Zourabichvili as a “director”.

Kavelashvili turned to politics after being removed from the position of leader of the Georgian football federation because he was not qualified.

Although his party stood with Georgian Dream in the October election, it has now decided to run in parliament as a “healthy opposition”, to fill the vacancy of “the so-called radical opposition is funded by foreign forces”.

Georgian Dream, founded by billionaire businessman and former Georgian Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, has been accused of dragging the country back into Russia’s sphere of influence.

According to Transparency International, both the EU and the US have condemned the government for going against democracy and more than 460 people have been detained across Georgia in the past two weeks.

The organization said more than 300 people were mistreated or tortured, including dozens of people in the Georgia media. Last weekend, thugs were filmed attacking a TV reporter and cameraman.

the EU condemns “brutal, illegal police force” and foreign ministers will consider measures against the government when they meet on Monday.

the The US State Department has imposed visa restrictions about Georgian officials, including government ministers and police.

Protesters have called on the international community to impose sanctions on top government officials as well as Bidzina Ivanishvili, Georgia’s most powerful man.

Pro-government groups also waged a campaign of harassment against civil society activists, beating them outside their homes and making arbitrary arrests.

“There was systematic torture, inhumane treatment and humiliation of citizens,” said former human rights defender Nino Lomjaria.

Theater employees participating in Friday’s protests chanted: “The police are everywhere, justice is nowhere.”

At one point, two men climbed a construction crane as protesters marched along an avenue. The couple waved Georgia flags as the crowd cheered below.