Gori University rector quitted position three months after being elected to the position

Lado Bitchasvhili, Shida Kartli

On January 15, 2019, the academician council of the Gori University unanimously elected Aleksandre Mgebrishvili to the position of the rector. Before that, Mgebrishvili was vice-rector of the university. His only rival in the competition was Kakha Toliashvili, but none of the 7 members of the academician council supported him. Toliashvili said with the election of Mgebrishvili, the former rector of the University Giorgi Sosiashvili would maintain his influences in the University; the rector-elect appointed Sosiashvili to the position of the vice-rector. Toliashvili said the situation in the University was very similar to the governance style of Putin-Medvedev in Russia and said that he would not participate in the new elections of the rector scheduled on July 16. 

Aleksandre Mgebrishvili clarified that he quitted the position in sake of the University’s interests. 

“I think it is better for the University,” Mgebrishvili said, whose application on resignation was already approved by the academician council; meanwhile the former rector Giorgi Sosiashvili will be the interim rector of the University. 

One of the candidates for the July 16 elections is Giorgi Sosiashvili, who occupied the position of the rector twice. The law did not allow him to be the rector third time in sequence. People think the decision of Mgebrishvili about resignation was result of a preliminary agreement between him and Sosiashvili.