08:14, 18 October 2018

Omega Group owner blames Georgian authorities for 2000 unemployed

Over 1800 employees of the Omega Group and 200 more of the "Iberia" TV Company lost their jobs due to authorities' revenge for publicizing corruption information. This was stated by Nato Chkheidze, the founder of the above TV Company and a Georgian MP.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that "Iberia" journalists had accused Georgian authorities of pressure on their TV Company through the Ministry of Finance's claims to the Omega Group, the main sponsor of the TV Company. On October 16, it had to stop broadcasting because of absence of funding.

"All the bank accounts of the Omega Group are blocked. Georgian authorities would not negotiate. The cigarette factory, where about 1500 people are employed, is not working; the TV Company with its 200 employees is stopped. Car sales services, employing some 300 persons, are also closed," Ms Chkheidze has stated.

In her opinion, the pressure on the Omega Group has a political context.

"Families are behind each of us. We've all taken loans, since we thought that we had stable workplaces ... Is the government really interested in having more homeless people in Georgia?" an employee of the "Iberia" TV Company asks.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on October 17, 2018 at 11:42 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Galina Gotua

Source: CK correspondent