Former UNM Chair refuses to join new board, cites “shadow rule”, “harmful influence” of former officials

Nika Melia, the former Chair of the United National Movement, the largest party in the domestic Georgian opposition, on Monday refused to become involved in a potential new board of the party and related talks, citing “informal influence” of David Kezerashvili, the wanted former Defence Minister of Georgia, and Vano Merabishvili, the former Interior Minister under the UNM Government, over party affairs. 

In his social media post, Melia, who lost the race for the party chairmanship to Levan Khabeishvili in January, following intra-party controversies where he called the winner a “puppet in the hands” of the former officials, once again pointed to "reputational problems" of Merabishvili and Kezerashvili, their "outdated views” that he said were “completely distant” from the public, and claimed “victory will never come” under their “informal presence” in the party. 

In his comments, Melia also claimed “no independent board adjusted to people's interest” could be created if the [party] management was “asking for healthy advice” from “party director Kezerashvili”, and added “unity is strength only with right and faithful people”.

I have always been and will be in favour of such unity. But if unity is created for the sake of making money, for the [party parliamentary] list and the [legislative] mandate, I have nothing to do with it", he added.

Rustavi 2 TV channel on Sunday claimed Nika Gvaramia, the recently pardoned founder of the opposition-minded Mtavari TV channel, who was convicted last year for improper commercial deals in 2015 and 2019 during his time at the helm of the former channel, was expected to chair the new UNM board. 

Last month, TV Pirveli reported Gigi Ugulava, the former Tbilisi Mayor, had proposed creation of the party’s governing board ahead of the next year’s Parliamentary Elections, with UNM members confirming talks on a some form of a committee inside the party. 

In his comments, Khabeishvili said he welcomed such a structure if it was run by the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili. 

The intra-party controversies in the UNM began after the arrest of Saakashvili in Tbilisi in October 2021, on his clandestine return from Ukraine after eight years in exile, with Khabeishvili accusing Melia of taking no genuine action for the former official’s release. 

Kezerashvili, who was convicted in Georgia in absentia for embezzlement of state funds while in office, was reported to be connected with an international scheme defrauding European citizens. 

In its report earlier in April, the British Broadcasting Corporation said the Panama Papers - the 11.5 million documents leaked in 2016 to show financial dealings of wealthy individuals and officials across the world - had shown the former official to be at the centre of the scheme in which operators contacted citizens with offers of investing their savings in profitable businesses before appropriating their funds.

Shortly before the publication of the report, Kezerashvili on April 3 told the Georgian-based Formula TV channel - where he owns shares -  that he was funding “pro-Western groups” in the country that requested support from him.

Merabishvili, one of the most influential figures of the UNM Government, left prison in 2020 after serving almost seven years for several crimes, including abuse of power, and like Kezerashvili, has not officially joined any domestic opposition group. 

The Georgian Dream authorities have alleged UNM and its leaders to be aiming to “spark tension and unrest” in the country to retake office.