Irakli Abesadze: corruption in major projects ‘endangered thousands of lives’

Corruption allegations involving former senior officials and the internal “purge” within the ruling Georgian Dream party have triggered sharp public questions about both legal accountability and the motives behind the power struggle inside the Government. The charge of laundering $7 million, for which former Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili chose to post bail secured by property rather than cash, has cast doubt on the Government’s declared commitment to fighting corruption.

In an interview with Front News, Irakli Abesadze, the founder of the Centre for Civic Participation, a non-governmental organisation, says current developments are not a fight against systemic corruption but a demonstrative punishment of a small segment of the corrupt hierarchy, designed to avoid harming the ruling authorities themselves.

Q. How should Gharibashvili’s decision to secure bail with property, instead of paying the full amount in cash, be assessed? Could it be seen as an attempt to avoid directly transferring money into the state budget?

A. Even the relatively limited charges brought by [Prime Minister Irakli] Kobakhidze’s Prosecutor’s Office show how deeply corrupt Gharibashvili was during his tenure as prime minister. And even this charge reflects only a fraction of the corruption he is widely suspected of.

Think about it: if he kept up to $7 million in cash at home, imagine how much other illegal wealth he could have accumulated. This is a very serious charge, even though it concerns only a small part of his corrupt activity.

As for posting bail through property collateral - this is a standard practice. I will not speculate on whether he has a million in cash or not. The fact remains: he allegedly kept up to $7 million at home in cash. Why would it be surprising if he had another million somewhere? Why he chose property over cash is secondary, in my view.

Q. Why do you think he is still not in pretrial detention? Several theories circulate: that he is being given time to bring money, or that he is being used as bait to expose larger corruption networks. Why is he still free, in your opinion?

A. The fact that Gharibashvili is not in pretrial detention is a profound injustice, especially when people are detained for causing damages of ₾300 ($111.14) or ₾400 ($148.18). Even [journalist] Mzia Amaglobali was placed in pretrial detention for slapping a police officer. People have been detained for not wearing masks. And now imagine - someone accused of laundering $7 million is released on bail.

Clearly, this has nothing to do with fighting corruption.

As for why he is free: I believe he still holds political weight for the Georgian Dream. He served twice as prime minister and previously as interior and defence minister. He clearly had his own clan and, it appears, an extensive corruption network. I think the ruling party wants to avoid a major internal clash between these clans. He is being kept outside prison to prevent the party and the Government from suffering significant damage. It is also possible that negotiations are taking place, perhaps even about replenishing the party’s “black budget”.

The fact remains: this is a major injustice. Gharibashvili clearly meets all legal criteria for pretrial detention. He can easily influence witnesses, particularly businesspeople involved in the alleged money laundering scheme. Keeping him out of detention is entirely unjustified.

Q. Let’s talk about the internal purge in the Georgian Dream and the dismissal of senior officials. In particular, the removal of Deputy Justice Minister Irakli Khmaladze following corruption allegations. Should we expect criminal charges against him, and if so, could Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze be next?

A. First of all, Kaladze’s City Hall has been one of the most corrupt institutions - even by [ruling party founder Bidzina] Ivanishvili regime standards. Khmaladze, before becoming deputy mayor, was directly involved in managing several corruption schemes. Naturally, serious questions remain about whether he took part in embezzling budget funds. Many allegations have already surfaced about him.

When he was removed from City Hall earlier, that alone was a blow to Kaladze and weakened him. Khmaladze was his real support base professionally and personally, they were close allies and friends.

So his dismissal was clearly a political gesture aimed against Kaladze. His position at the Ministry of Justice was nominal, likely arranged at Kaladze’s request. No one actually relied on him there. But yes, his final removal signals something.

This is not a battle against corruption. This is removing only five–ten percent of the corrupt pyramid.

Q. In the case of the collapsed Samtredia–Grigoleti bridge, the investigation cites the absence of a supervisory company, fabricated documents and substandard construction, causing over ₾16 million ($5.93mln) in damages. What corruption patterns emerge in such major infrastructure projects and how should international oversight improve? Could similar schemes exist in other projects?

A. Anywhere you look, in any major project, you can find stolen money. We have been saying this for years. What’s different now is that the regime itself has indirectly confirmed it through evidence.

This highway is one of the most significant infrastructure projects in Georgia’s modern history. To learn that millions were stolen and wasted in such a project means thousands of lives were put at risk. And that’s aside from the major economic importance of the project.

When money is stolen, work substandard and a bridge collapses, of course people begin to question whether the same corruption exists elsewhere. We also know that charges were brought against associates of former State Security Service official [Grigol] Liluashvili for failing to carry out necessary reinforcement work in [the mountain resort of] Shovi.

A key question is whether this negligence contributed to the Shovi tragedy. When someone is tasked with reinforcement works and they simply do not do them, again we are talking about risking people’s lives, health and property.

Everywhere you look, the pattern is the same: corruption across all sectors. Their main purpose was stealing money. We hardly need to add anything more.

Q. There were reports that Anti-Corruption Bureau head Razhden Kuprashvili was dismissed. The reports were later denied and there are now claims that Kobakhidze plans to abolish the bureau altogether. Should we expect legal action against Kuprashvili himself?

A. Kuprashvili is a politically and legally cartoonish figure. No one ever relied on him and he often found himself giving absurd explanations simply because he was tasked with executing political instructions, whether from Gharibashvili or regarding the “broken” asset declaration website. He spent a whole year insisting the site had “technical issues”.

There are signs that Kobakhidze intends to abolish the bureau. Kobakhidze wants to rebuild the state around himself. They are discussing strengthening the State Department-like agency. He wants to appoint loyal individuals and structures to consolidate his position within Ivanishvili’s inner circle.