Deputy Interior Minister Sabanadze resigns
By Natalia Kochiashvili
Wednesday, March 24
Kakhaber Sabanadze Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia Vakhtang Gomelauri announced his resignation on March 23. Sabanadze connects the resignation with the controversial materials about him aired by TV channels Mtavari Arkhi and TV Pirveli and speaks about the necessity of starting a thorough investigation.
The information was spread on his Facebook page, which was created a few hours before the post was made. However, the Ministry of Internal Affairs confirms his resignation and the authenticity of the post.
"The above mentioned facts need to be studied, a comprehensive and impartial investigation must be conducted to establish the truth. Therefore, in order to ensure confidence in the investigation process, I resign! I think this will be a precedent for all officials to act with a high standard of responsibility in case of questions," reads the post.
Last Saturday and Sunday, TV Pirveli and Mtavari Arkhi prepared the materials in which Sabanadze was featured. According to TV Pirveli, their source provided them with the recordings, which prove that the disruption of the 2019 rally and damage of the equipment happened on Sabanadze's instructions. Similar information was spread by the Mtavari aRKhi based on a specific person’s claims. Ivane Gulashvili, allegedly a former intelligence officer, revealed controversial orders he received from then Deputy Interior Minister Sabanadze during June 20 unrest in 2019, and exposed high-ranking officials of conducting covert surveillance.TV Pirveli’s story on the other hand, also touched upon Sabanadze, close to then newly-elected PM Gakharia(2019) and alleged he was being spied on by other security officers. The channel said Gulashvili was imprisoned, among others, for having disclosed confidential files.
The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia said yesterday that it started a probe into recently-aired stories. According to the Prosecutor’s Office, a criminal investigation has been launched under Article 158, involving violating the secrecy of private communication, and Article 333, involving exceeding official powers.
After the two stories aired, the Public Defender of Georgia, as well as the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA), a key local watchdog, condemned the practice of illegal encroachment on private life by the Georgian authorities and called for a timely and effective reaction to the allegations.
Prior to his appointment as First Deputy Interior Minister in November 2017, Sabanadze briefly served as the Deputy Head of the Counter Terrorist Center of the State Security Service in the same year. Between 2015 and 2017, he was the Deputy Head of the state security department of the State Security Service. Earlier, he held various high-ranking posts in the Georgian Foreign Intelligence Special Service, in the Interior Ministry, and the Defense Ministry.
Corruption scandals related to him and the new redistribution of spheres of influence are named as the reasons for the dismissal of the influential Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs. Irakli Kadagidze, a former high-ranking official of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, is waiting for a staff purge in the police and does not rule out that Sabanadze's staff will also leave their positions.
The opposition is considering the Gakharia-Gomelauri controversy as the first version.
Recall that back in January, the media had been spreading information that there was a confrontation between Gomelauri and then PM Gakharia, who plans to re-enter politics soon. The Interior Minister then commented that information was incorrect. He said the ongoing changes in his system were the result of rotation and not confrontation. Journalists also asked him about the possible release of Sabanadze - on this question Gomelauri answered that Sabanadze was more of ‘his staff’, since they had worked together for 5 years and he was happy to be appointed in the police force.
