On January 24, Transparency International-Georgia, a local watchdog that investigates corruption in the country, revealed that none of at least 531 draft decrees, almost a quarter of which (122 decrees) concerned the transfer of state property to specific entities, considered by the Georgian government in 2023, have been made public. In addition, the government did not publish the agendas of four out of 48 meetings. TI-Georgia stated that it is impossible to obtain this information through the public information request mechanism.
According to the watchdog, this leads to the suspicion that the government is trying to hide problematic decisions. TI-Georgia says that “for more than three years now, the government no longer considers itself accountable to the public and makes decisions behind closed doors,” undermining public trust in the authorities.
TI-Georgia notes that the decrees issued by the government in 2023, concerning the transfer of state property to certain entities or the revision of terms agreed with the state, contain “clear corruption risks.” These suspicions are reinforced by cases of alleged illegal transfers of state property uncovered by investigative journalists in the past, says the watchdog.
TI-Georgia accuses the government of setting a bad example for state institutions and violating several laws, including the Georgian Constitution. TI-Georgia calls on the government to “abandon the harmful practice of concealing the decrees” and to publish all documents in accordance with the law.
Also Read:
- 24/11/2023 – TI – Georgia Reveals Political and Procurement Links of Mining License Holders
- 15/11/2023 – Winemakers Dominate GD Donations, Get Credits, Subsidies – Watchdog
- 03/11/2023 – TI-Georgia: Problem of High Level Corruption Remains Severe
- 17/08/2023 – TI Georgia: Almost Half of Political Donations Went to Lelo for Georgia
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