Mtavari TV’s Okuashvili: Gvaramia and Gabunia exploit crisis to conceal their crimes

Zaza Okuashvili, one of the founders of Mtavari Arkhi, issued a statement asserting that Nika Gvaramia and his associate Giorgi Gabunia have chosen a critical moment for the country to obscure their own wrongdoing, attempting to portray the situation as though Giorgi Kurdadze has created obstacles.

“There is only one solution to ensure the independence of Mtavari Arkhi: the financial manipulations that are harming the station for the political purposes of Bidzina Ivanishvili must cease. To achieve this, it is essential for Giorgi Gabunia, Nika Gvaramia’s protégé, to resign from the position of General Director,” Okuashvili stated.

Here is the full statement:

“In the not-too-distant past, specifically in 2004, I was the first to publicly expose the government’s oppressive actions towards businesses, particularly the extortion of shares from Omega Group, including TV Iberia. Additionally, in 2018, I was the first to reveal the true nature of Ivanishvili, again through the example of extortion targeting Omega Group and TV Iberia. Today, I am embroiled in four ongoing international legal disputes against Ivanishvili and his associates in the courts of Great Britain and Sweden. I must now address the involvement of Bidzina Ivanishvili, Nika Gvaramia, and his protégé Giorgi Gabunia at Mtavari Arkhi. I founded the TV company Mtavari Arkhi on the foundation of TV Iberia. Immediately upon its establishment, Nika Gvaramia awarded himself a monthly salary of GEL 88,500, and subsequently engaged in money laundering—transferring millions in undeclared cash dollars from Georgia to international bank accounts across Europe and Britain. As the director, he artificially pushed Mtavari Arkhi to the brink of bankruptcy due to years of state budget debts, which currently total GEL 13 million.

Meanwhile, Gvaramia misappropriated funds belonging to Omega Group, incurring additional damages of up to GEL 6 million for Omega Group as the owner of Mtavari Arkhi. Through their financial crimes at Mtavari Arkhi, Gvaramia and Gabunia have become agents carrying out the orders of Ivanishvili and his associates. Gvaramia has taken numerous actions to fragment the opposition to benefit the ruling party.

For the past nine months, Giorgi Kurdadze, the director I appointed at Mtavari Arkhi, has exposed the misdeeds of both the previous and current general directors. He has sent over 50 formal warnings to Giorgi Gabunia and other responsible parties, including Nika Gvaramia, insisting that criminal activities at Mtavari Arkhi must cease. Despite facing significant pressure and written threats for the past nine months, Director Giorgi Kurdadze has steadfastly refused to sign any illegal documentation. He has demanded that Gvaramia and Gabunia restore the television network’s operations to legal standards.

The station must be liberated from Gvaramia’s unilateral control, as he is currently under the direction and protection of Ivanishvili and his group due to millions of illegally appropriated GEL and dollars. Nika Gvaramia and Giorgi Gabunia have chosen this critical period for the country to obscure their own transgressions, attempting to frame Giorgi Kurdadze as an obstacle. Their actions occur against the backdrop of Kurdadze’s signature as a director being systematically ignored.

The situation at Mtavari Arkhi remains unchanged, despite the awareness of all relevant state agencies—including the Ministry of Finance, National Bank, Revenue Service, and General Prosecutor’s Office—regarding these issues.

I wish to inform the public that the only way to preserve Mtavari Arkhi’s independence is to end the financial manipulations that serve Bidzina Ivanishvili’s political agenda. For this to happen, Giorgi Gabunia must relinquish his position as General Director. It is imperative that a new director be appointed in collaboration with the employees of Mtavari Arkhi, and that a board comprised of public representatives be elected to ensure the station operates legally and maintains balanced, objective broadcasting.

The professional and dedicated work of the channel’s employees should not be exploited for specific political gain through Gvaramia’s influence. I urge the other significant stakeholders of Mtavari Arkhi, besides myself, to take responsibility. Instead of remaining neutral, I implore them to actively engage in this process while time remains so that Mtavari Arkhi does not become a casualty of Bidzina Ivanishvili’s political manoeuvres via Nika Gvaramia. They should lose control over Mtavari Arkhi and allow it to remain independent rather than shut it down altogether. Today, through timely action, together as the principal shareholders, we possess the power to direct the television station to serve the public interest,” concluded Zaza Okuashvili.