March 12, 2012 –Day of Imposing Total Fines for the Chamber of Control!

Tamar Lepsveridze, GuriaNews

“Natia Mogeladze’s department is busy!” “Closed sessions are held!” “I cannot see even my colleagues!” – head of public relation department of the Chamber of Control Pati Mamiashvili has been replying to the Guria News for about one month with those phrases.

Despite our many attempts, the Chamber of Control did not answer any of our questions. However, all the time they suggest us to visit their website and find information about fining of either Georgian Dream or Cartu Bank.

The head of Public Relation Department at the Chamber of Control could not answer when closed sessions will end in the institution and when Natia Mogeladze’s service will be able to answer journalists’ questions. “You should visit our website and you will find very interesting information about imposed fines on Cartu Bank,” Pati Mamiashvili suggested us, whom we asked comments about current events in Guria region. Namely, we wondered which institution the physical person must apply to, who have received unregistered and address-less letters from the Chamber of Control.

Zaal Mamaladze also received unaddressed and unregistered letter from the Chamber of Control. According to the letter, he was summoned to the Tsereteli Str. #2 1st Floor though it did not indicate to the name of the city.

The summon is placed in the envelope without address of the Chamber of Control and the summon is not printed on the blank of the Chamber of Control; the document does not have registration number and date; deputy head of the state audit agency, which is in charge of monitoring political parties’ funding Giorgi Amiranashvili has signed the document.

The text is equal to the summon of the prosecutor’s office and it reads: “Georgian state audit agency, which is in charge of monitoring political parties’ funding, is carrying out administrative investigation on hypocritical funding of political entities and you are summoned to give receipts concerning the issue. Additionally, based on Article 252 of the Administrative Code of Georgia you have right to study case materials, give receipt, provide evidence, raise solicitations, and enjoy your right to defense. You can also enjoy the service of interpreter and appeal against the judgment. Unaccomplished responsibility of providing the Chamber of Control with the requested information is punished by the Georgian law. You must arrive at Tsereteli Str.2, 1st floor at 12:00 pm on March 12, 2012.”

About 50 people received the summons in Chokhatauri district; and their number is about 100 in the Western Georgia.

Zaal Mamaladze is dentist and has no connection with politics. However, he is brother of Ia Mamaladze, founder of the Guria News, Chairwoman of the Georgian Regional Media Association and one of the organizers of the Campaign “It Affects You”.

It was reply of Pati Mamiashvili to our questions: Why was he summoned if he is not member of the political party?

Today, the most problematic Article 26' went into force. According to this article, various entities also share the same restrictions as political parties. Those entities can be legal persons who are directly or indirectly connected with the political party.

The law envisages same restrictions for physical persons: 1) who personally declares goals of political parties or election purposes; 2) who is somehow connected with the applicant and is either family member, relative, friend, neighbor… 3) who cooperates with the applicant.

Experts told the Guria News about expected control of ordinary citizens and media organizations by the Chamber of Control with this new law.

Levan Izoria, lawyer, professor: “Everything, including media activities are indirectly or directly connected with political processes – highlighting political processes, meeting with politicians, holding discussions with them, etc. Nobody, except Chamber of Control, knows what the term “other political goals” means. The Chamber of Control can individually decide that for example, GuriaNews, who declared their purpose to make the election procedures more transparent, has political goals and advertisement payments paid to the newspaper by any political party can easily become a basis to control your expenditure.

Indeed, it is mechanism of total control and I would like to underline another main problem – it is Chamber of Control and its increased authorities. When a lawmaker does not clarify the abovementioned entities, it means they allow the Chamber of Control to individually decide who must be controlled.

The Chamber of Control is not authorized by the Constitution to control funds of political parties; moreover, it is cannot control accounts of physical persons – it contradicts the Constitution of Georgia. The state audit can control only state expenditures.”

The citizens, who were summoned to the district administrations by the Chamber of Control, leave the office without comments. They said they were instructed by the Chamber of Control not to comment on the issue,

Apparently, we are dealing with mechanism of total control which, except the fear factor, psychologically oppresses people and compels them to decline all political activities before the elections.

As for Pati Mamiashvili’s “request” to read more interesting information on their website, we really visited the website and learned about new fine: On March 12, the state audit agency in charge of monitoring political finances has fined Cartu Bank, owned by billionaire opposition politician Bidzina Ivanishvili, with GEL 822,040. The information is spread by the Chamber of Control itself.