Businessman Nika Gamkrelidze states that there is no simple solution to the current situation, and the priority now is to ensure that the voice of freedom-loving people is heard. In a special broadcast of "Business Week," where business leaders discuss the factors behind the current crisis and potential solutions, Nikoloz Gamkrelidze emphasized that the silence of society, including the business sector, has led to this situation.
According to him, the only way forward is the release of all detainees and the announcement of new elections.
"Solidarity with all journalists and all affected citizens—there’s no other way to describe this than brutality. For the past ten days, we’ve been witnessing all this in the country’s main square. How did we get here? There are many reasons, but one of the main ones is our silence as a business community. The rules of the game that have existed in this country for years, inherited from the Soviet era—the so-called 'tshekavikuri' rules—have fostered individual conformity and tolerance of this environment. This comfort zone we’ve been living in, myself included, allows for success only through connections and access to decision-makers in the government. That’s how things have been done, but this system has a price, and the country is paying it now.
My greatest wish is to turn this page, but I see that we haven’t done so yet. I hope this discussion will help us realize that for the country to move forward, we must turn this page and conduct business differently in a free and democratic Georgia.There’s no simple way out. The only solution is to hear the voice of freedom-loving people standing outside... This means the unconditional release of all detainees and the scheduling of new, fair elections, where the country can choose the leadership it truly wants," Gamkrelidze stated.
