Former National Library chair reflects on 11 years of achievements while in office

In a farewell statement shared on social media on Monday, Giorgi Kekelidze, the former chair of the National Parliamentary Library of Georgia, expressed gratitude to the “dedicated staff” members who he said had been his colleagues during his 11-year tenure, following the decision by Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili last week to replace him by Konstantine Gamsakhurdia, the son of the first President of Georgia Zviad Gamsakhurdia. 

“Today I said goodbye to the National Library. I said goodbye to the wonderful employees with whom I spent 11 glorious years,” Kekelidze wrote on his social media account. 

He conveyed a sense of pride in leaving behind a “significant legacy”, highlighting the accomplishments achieved “collectively”.

“There were many tears and there were smiles because we were able to create a great history of becoming an educational brand of the National Library. I am leaving proud and content, having contributed significantly and garnered much affection. They too should remain proud and content because all of this we created together,” he said. Kekelidze emphasized the importance of the human element in the world of books, acknowledging that books are not just entities but products of people’s creation, about people, and for people to read. He encouraged his former colleagues to embrace the diversity of opinions and thoughts within the library community, recognizing the essence of individual choices in their collective journey.

In his previous message, Kekelidze called Papuashvili’s decision “unfair”.