Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has cited personnel shortcomings as one of the reasons the party, in its 13th year of governance, decided to strengthen its fight against corruption.
Answering a journalist’s question about whether GD is actively combating corruption, Kobakhidze reflected on the challenges faced by the country, including external pressures and internal difficulties within the party.
He did not directly address why he failed to act when prior corruption incidents occurred, some of which took place under his oversight as part of the parliamentary control system.
“As for the timing, why now and not earlier? I was appointed Prime Minister in February of last year. It was a difficult year, including the election period, and we faced many challenges, some of which were artificially created from outside. We also had shortcomings in the personnel department, and we addressed them. Last year was challenging but successful. This allowed us to reorganize several areas this year, including law enforcement, and these personnel changes helped reveal a number of corruption cases,” Kobakhidze said.
He added that the government’s approach is not only to uncover past corruption but to prevent similar actions in the present and future. “All structures have been mobilized, including the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Financial Police, and the Prosecutor’s Office. We have also strengthened the Efficiency Department and the Audit Department within the government administration. We are working in all directions, not only to investigate past crimes but, above all, to eliminate any corrupt actions going forward. What happened in the past must be revealed, but we must also ensure no future corruption cases. We will take maximum care of this,” Kobakhidze emphasized.
