Georgian NGOs call on MIA to deal with politically-motivated dismissals at Tbilisi Mayoralty

Members of the Association of Young Lawyers, the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy, and the Transparency International Georgia, have reported on the dismissals of officials of the Tbilisi Mayoralty for political grounds. The activists have called on the law enforcement bodies to check the facts and respond to them.

On October 8, members of the "United National Movement" Party held a rally in front of the Tbilisi Mayoralty, demanding to allow their representatives to attend the meeting of the Tbilisi Mayoralty and protesting against the activities of the commission for certification of officials from the Mayoralty. According to the protestors, the team of David Narmaniya, the new Tbilisi Mayor, is making preparations to dismiss older staff members for political reasons.

According to the NGO activists, starting from August, the officials from the Tbilisi Mayoralty face situations when they have to resign. The NGOs have demanded to provide them with a chance to monitor the process of certification for the officials of the Tbilisi Mayoralty.

In his turn, Alexander Margishvili, the Deputy Mayor of Tbilisi, has stated that he welcomes the activities of the NGOs; however, the top-ranking city official has called them on to refrain from "unfounded allegations that the Tbilisi Mayoralty dismisses its officials for political reasons."

Earlier, the Tbilisi authorities emphasized that the Mayoralty continues to employ 95 percent of its staff members, who worked prior to the arrival of the new City Mayor.