Reshuffle might continue
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze
Friday, July 25
The Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli Gharibashvili, states that the government reshuffle might continue. He stresses that he keeps observing those who remained in the cabinet. Apart from domestic issues, the PM also made a comment in terms of the developments in Ukraine, stressing that Georgia should be focused on its own interests rather than responding to various speculations.
The Prime Minister stressed that Georgia stands by Ukraine and shares the international community attitude concerning the developments in the country. “This is what we could do…we should be more focused on our interests now and continue our constructive dialogue with Russia,” Gharibashvili said, noting that Georgian-Russian representatives have held another successful meeting, and the two countries’ experts have discussed issues related to trade relations after Georgia’s signing of the association agreement with the EU.
Commenting on domestic issues, Gharibashvili stated that the cabinet reshuffle might continue, as there are several ministers with whose activities he was not happy. Several days ago, the PM dismissed 7 ministers; their replacements have already been named and presented to the Parliament by the President. Presumably, the Minister of Interior Affairs, who has been criticized the most by the opposition, will not be on the list of those “being observed”. Gharibashvili emphasized that Aleksandre Tchikaidze is doing his best and called statements made by the opposition regarding increased number of criminals absurd.
“As for the ministers who remained in positions, I will continue to observe them carefully. I have questions with regard to some ministers. I want to give them another chance to demonstrate their abilities. The changes are positive and I believe that the ministers will be more motivated and active,” Gharibashvili said, stating that the dismissed ministers were mainly poor in making independent decisions.
Gharibashvili denied the speculation as if the Minister of the Environment Khatuna Gogaladze was dismissed due to her negative attitude over the construction of the Khudon Hydro Electro Power Station. The PM stated that the ex-Minister had failed to deal with managerial duties. He admitted that the investigation has been launched in the Ministry regarding one of the more interesting cases.
Gharibashvili has made a critical assessment about the head of the Supreme Court, Kote Kublashvili. According to him, he was surprised why Kublashvili did not react concerning the offensive statement made by former Interior Minister of Ukraine Iuri Lusetsko in terms of a Georgian judge. Lusetsko, who attended a trial of Georgia’s ex-Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili, stated that the “judge seemed more frightened of Merabishvili, than Merabishvili himself to the verdict made by the judge.”
Responding to the statement, Kublashvili said that he is surprised by the PM’s actions. According to him, Minister of Justice Thea Tsulukiani frequently makes negative statements concerning judges and the action is never condemned by the Prime Minister. Concerning the above mentioned case, Kublashvili stated that it did not create any threat for the judge, and the judge could defend himself in the situation.
The Prime Minister also confirmed that there is a certain distance between him and the President. However, he suggested that the distancing is caused by the current ruling system and differences in duties, rather than some private rivalry.
