Interior Ministry to sue Formula TV for alleged misinformation
Formula TV reported earlier on Saturday that the deputy head of one of the police divisions in Tbilisi has escorted prostitutes during the curfew.
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The Georgian Interior Ministry intends to sue opposition-minded Formula TV for alleged misinformation and defamation after the media outlet claimed that police officers have been violating their official duties to support prostitution in return for money.
In two separate reports aired in January and March 2021, Formula TV claimed that police officers have escorted sex-workers during the curfew.
Formula TV reported on Saturday that the person driving the Skoda car, who had escorted prostitutes during the curfew, is the deputy head of Vake-Saburtalo police division No. 7 in Tbilisi.
In response, the strategic communication department of the ministry has instead accused the media outlet of misinforming the population in order to ‘weaken public trust in the police’.
Claiming that Formula TV has been repeatedly and deliberately spreading false information against them, the ministry said they will 'take legal action in the coming days and protect the dignity of its employees in court'.
The State Audit Office of Georgia says that 43 per cent of tenders of the Ministry of Internal Affairs opened in 2017 ran without competition, as single companies were involved.
Two employees of Formula TV have been attacked and physically assaulted late at midnight on April 9. Director General of Formula TV Zuka Gumbaridze stated earlier today that during curfew an unknown individual broke the window of a car owned by the channel’s driver.
The Prosecutor General’s Office and the Interior Ministry of Georgia have arrested 11 individuals for providing a venue for and supporting prostitution in the capital Tbilisi.