MP Tina Khidasheli accuses Rustavi-2 TV owners of illegal acquisition

We have just finished the investigation and by the way, a very nice report is awaiting you by the end of the year, the head of the Temporary Investigation Commission of the Georgian Parliament studying activities of the GNCC (Georgian National Communications Commission) Tina Khidasheli told the representatives of the UNM Zurab Abashidze and Giorgi Vashadze in yesterdays TV talk show "Positsia (Position)on Rustavi2 channel.

"You should not be surprised that Irakli Chikovani [former head of the GNCC] was a monopolist and at the same time - regulatory body, monitor, and everything. I hope that the Prosecutors Office will have relevant reaction towards all the people involved in this scheme, including Mr. Karamanishvilis [current owners of Rustavi-2 TV company] after I send everything we have investigated, Khidasheli said.

The conversation between the parties started after the UNM representatives had disagreed on Khidashelis statement about the existence of monopolies under the rule of the former government. Khidasheli however argued that the National Movement had developed an entire sphere of monopoly named Telecommunications and also blamed the owners of Rustavi-2 of acquiring the TV company and other one such as Tbilisi Transport Company through machinations.

I am not interested in Rustavi-2. I am just interested in two things. First, that there was a commission in Georgia which was shareholder of what he was obliged to regulate and second, I am interested in this TV company as much as when it was created and when it was attacked by riot police I was among those people who was defending. This TV channel was stolen then and it became a registered gun, travelling from one Defense Minister to another with the Ministers portfolio,Khidasheli said.

Khidashelis accusitions were answered by the owners of Rustavi-2 TV today. As Giorgi and LevanKaramanishvilis stated Mrs. Khidasheli is spreading false information.

"We never had anything in common with the Tbilisi mini-bus transport. We own the TV Rustavi2 legally and no single transactions made for its acquisition violated Georgian law. We are sorry that the attacks of Mrs. Khidasheli on the TV and its founders becames aimed and consistent trend in which the high representative of the government violates the constitutional rights of the shareholders and brings the pressure on the independent media, reads the Karamanishvilis statement.

The Temporary Investigative Commission, that finished studying the activity of Georgian National Communications Commission, was established by the decree of the Parliament on May 1, 2013. The Commission is headed by Tina Khidasheli.

As it was pointed out in the commissions interim report, a number of complaints towards the GNCC have been studied during the investigation. Apart from the concrete TV cases the commission also investigated the conflict of interest of current and former GNCC Heads.