Prepared by Messenger Staff
Prosecutor's Office Investigates Mtavari Arkhi Over Alleged Financial Misconduct
The Prosecutor's Office of Georgia said on July 17 it had requested financial records from the Georgian Dream-critical Mtavari Arkhi channel, currently off air, and its contracting sales company as part of a probe into alleged financial misconduct at the broadcaster.
The investigation stems from a complaint filed by Giorgi (Gogi) Kurdadze, a director appointed by Mtavari Arkhi co-founder Zaza Okuashvili, and follows a months-long internal management conflict that led the channel to go off air in May and continue operating only through social media.
According to prosecutors, the probe centers on alleged "abuse of managerial authority in an enterprise, by a group acting in concert, misappropriation and embezzlement of the legal entity's funds, and the legalization of illicit income."
Mtavari Arkhi denied any wrongdoing in a July 16 statement, calling the allegations "absurd."
"As we stated back in the fall of last year, Zaza Okuashvili has been making false and baseless accusations against Mtavari Arkhi's management and co-founders, serving the interests of the Russian regime," Mtavari Arkhi said, noting that the ruling Georgian Dream party succeeded in using Okuashvili to shut down the channel.
Georgian Dream "is once again attempting retribution against the station's management and other co-founders, based on defamation by Okuashvili," the statement said.
Internal discord at Mtavari Arkhi has intensified in recent months. Channel general director Giorgi Gabunia has accused Zaza Okuashvili of orchestrating efforts to dismantle the station and of colluding with the ruling Georgian Dream party. Gabunia and Mtavari Arkhi also argued that Kurdadze, acting under Okuashvili's direction, deliberately withheld payments to service providers.
Okuashvili denied those accusations and in turn publicly accused Gabunia and Mtavari Arkhi co-founder Nika Gvaramia of "financial manipulation," which he said led the channel to "artificial bankruptcy."
Mtavari Arkhi was founded by Nika Gvaramia, a former director general of the Rustavi 2 TV channel. Gvaramia was first jailed in 2022 after being found guilty of abuse of power related to Rustavi 2 management, in a case widely seen as politically motivated. He entered politics soon after his release by presidential pardon in 2023. He quit as director general upon co-founding the opposition Ahali party early in 2024 and transferred his 12 percent stake in the media outlet to his wife, Sopho Liluashvili.
He is currently one of six opposition leaders jailed for refusing to testify before Tsulukiani's commission in the Georgian Dream-led parliament, which is investigating alleged misconduct by former officials.
UNM and Coalition for Change Apply to Retain Electoral Numbers
The United National Movement has submitted a request to the Central Election Commission (CEC) to retain its electoral number, the party confirmed to InterpressNews on July 17.
The party Coalition for Change has also submitted a similar application to the CEC.
In a statement, Coalition for Change said the request was purely procedural and not linked to participation in "so-called elections."
"For these reasons, the Coalition for Change is making this procedural application, as retaining the electoral number is related to the party's effective operations and not to participation in the so-called elections, including under the conditions of the current authoritarian regime," the statement said.
Under amendments made to the Electoral Code in 2021, political parties must apply to the election administration by July 17 of the election year in order to retain their electoral number. Failure to do so may result in the loss of the number due to unclear legal provisions. The code specifies that this is not electoral registration, but rather a formal procedure to retain the number for future use.
"We emphasize that these formal procedures are in no way connected to participation in the so-called local elections, which are, in reality, rigged, criminal, and Russian processes," the statement added.
The coalition reiterated its long-standing position of non-cooperation with the ruling government. It cited past decisions such as refusing to enter parliament, withdrawing party lists, rejecting state funding, and declining to participate in parliamentary commissions.
"We also reject the so-called local elections, which the regime uses to legitimize the status quo. We recognize only new, free, and fair parliamentary elections," the party said. "We are providing this clarification to avoid future speculation."
