Georgia's new alliance leader Nika Gvaramia reveals plans: who will join his team and allies?
Nika Gvaramia’s political plans in Georgia
Nika Gvaramia, the founder and former CEO of Georgia’s popular television channel “Mtavari Arkhi,” will officially launch a new political alliance in March, 2024. It’s named “Akhali” (“New”).
The team composition and potential members of the political alliance are still unknown. However, it’s already evident that the plans of Gvaramia, the former ally of Mikhail Saakashvili, are linked to the 2024 elections.
ℹ️ In the fall of 2024, Georgia will hold parliamentary elections. As a parliamentary republic, the outcome of these elections will determine the leadership for the next four years. For the past twelve years, the ruling party has been the Georgian Dream, founded by the country’s wealthiest individual, billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili. In 2012, the Georgian Dream secured victory over the United National Movement, led by Mikhail Saakashvili. Despite holding no official position, Ivanishvili is widely regarded both domestically and internationally as the de facto leader of the nation.
Team
Gvaramia took to Facebook to share a photo featuring himself surrounded by young activists and representatives from the non-governmental sector. The former television chief introduced them as members of the new team.
Gvaramia writes that the photo captures a working process: the team is discussing how the transition from dictatorial regimes can occur.
Many of the faces in the photo are unfamiliar to the wider public. Gvaramia states that he harbors ambitions to bring a new generation into politics, which inspired the alliance’s name, Akhali (“New”).
In an interview with TV Pirveli, Gvaramia announced that he would unveil the team’s composition by early March.
Partners
The second crucial question is which political party or parties he intends to collaborate with.
ℹ️ All surveys indicate that none of the opposition parties have a high enough rating to independently win the elections and form a government without a coalition. Thus, the question of who will collaborate with whom is highly relevant in Georgian politics today.
In the most recent IRI survey from December 2023, the ruling party Georgian Dream has 25 percent, followed by the National Movement with 13 percent. Giorgi Gakharia’s For Georgia party has four percent, Strategy Agmashenebeli has three percent, Lelo has two percent, and Girchi – More Freedom also has two percent.
Gvaramia has yet to disclose with whom he’ll form an alliance but mentions the parties and politicians he’s consulting with.
Among them are Nika Melia, the former head of the National Movement who left the party after internal strife.
Also in the mix are the political union Droa-Girchi led by Elene Khoshtaria and Zurab Japaridze, and Lelo, founded by Mamuka Khazaradze, the businessman behind TBC Bank.
Gvaramia also expressed interest in having former public defender Nino Lomjaria as a political partner.
Gvaramia believes that these individuals and parties can pose a challenge to the ruling Georgian Dream, but only if they unite:
“Together, these parties plus individual figures with political and social capital can garner over 25 percent of the votes. I have ambitions, and I assert that unity, if we can achieve it, will become the biggest competitor to the Georgian Dream,” says Gvaramia.
The politicians he mentioned have not yet publicly stated their intentions to collaborate with Gvaramia in the future.
Gvaramia’s stance on former prime minister Giorgi Gakharia
In the future coalition, Gvaramia envisions including the party of former Georgian prime minister Giorgi Gakharia. Nika Gvaramia says that at this stage, he is not planning to raise questions about the former prime minister’s complex political past.
ℹ️ For many in society and the opposition, former favorite of oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili (considered the shadow ruler of Georgia), former frime minister Giorgi Gakharia is a controversial figure. He was in office as the minister of internal affairs when on June 20, 2019, riot police violently dispersed peaceful protesters on Rustaveli Avenue. This event entered history as the “Gavrilov’s Night.” Dozens of protesters were injured, and two people lost their eyes. Because of this incident, many opposition parties, at least at this stage, openly declare that they will not collaborate with Gakharia.
“As for Gakharia, I believe I’m the only one from the opposition spectrum who dares to say this,” says Gvaramia.
The main question regarding Gakharia is not about his past but about his future, Gvaramia says. What decision will Gakharia make if, following the elections, his position is crucial for forming a coalition, and with whom will he form that coalition – the government or the opposition?
“Perhaps Gakharia also has questions about my past. I propose to him and everyone else to discuss this past when we find ourselves in a safe future. Today, speaking about the past, we may lose the future and get stuck in this murky present,” says Gvaramia.
In response, Gakharia’s party stated that they have no intention of joining any political organization before the elections. “Don’t stick to us,” writes one of the party leaders, Mikhail Daushvili, on social media.
About the National Movement and Mikheil Saakashvili
Despite Mikheil Saakashvili being in prison for almost three years, his presence still holds significant sway over the ongoing political dynamics within the opposition flank.
His party, the National Movement, which governed the country for nine years (2003-2012), has fragmented into smaller factions during his time in opposition. It’s these former members of the National Movement that now form a crucial core of the opposition spectrum.
Nika Gvaramia, a close associate of Mikheil Saakashvili and a teammate, distances himself from the National Movement, stating that the party is currently unacceptable to him.
“I don’t like anything about the ENM at the moment, except for the correct foreign policy vector. For me, the main factor of the National Movement is Misha Saakashvili. But what’s happening behind Misha’s back is problematic for me. I won’t vote for them for the first time in my political life,” said Gvaramia.
Gvaramia also differs with certain views held by Mikhail Saakashvili.
“We agree with each other on important issues. And there may not be agreement on tactical issues, but I don’t see a problem in that,” said Nika Gvaramia on TV Pirveli. “Misha has his own party, which is currently the largest opposition party. I think I should go in a different direction,” says Gvaramia.
What about the president?
In the perspective of Nika Gvaramia, Salome Zurabishvili should engage more actively in political processes and serve as a mediator.
“In a sense, this would assist the opposition in coordinating their actions,” Gvaramia stated.
Gvaramia – a former deputy prosecutor and a connoisseur of “What? Where? When?”
A lawyer by profession and a member of the intellectual club “What? Where? When?”, Nika Gvaramia held positions in the government of Mikhail Saakashvili, including deputy prosecutor general of Georgia, minister of justice, and minister of education.
After the rise to power of the Georgian Dream in November 2012, Gvaramia took over the management of the Rustavi-2 television channel, which was then under opposition control.
At that time, Gvaramia became one of the most influential and, at the same time, controversial figures in the media landscape of Georgia.
After the European Court ruled in July 2019 to return Rustavi-2 to its former owner, Kibar Khalvashi, Gvaramia managed to launch a new television channel exactly three months later.
Mtavari Arkhi began broadcasting on September 9, 2019. Five years later, it holds the second (or, according to some observers, third) position in the country after the pro-government Imedi TV channel.
Simultaneously, criminal charges were filed against Gvaramia. The prosecution alleged cases of embezzlement of property belonging to the television company, commercial bribery, forgery and use of counterfeit documents, as well as the laundering of illegal income during his tenure at Rustavi-2.
For instance, in one episode, Gvaramia allegedly used a company-owned vehicle of Rustavi-2 for personal purposes, notably chauffeuring his family. Surveillance footage showed his wife using the vehicle to transport their children to school.
On May 16, 2022, Nika Gvaramia was arrested in the courtroom. The head of the critically-minded media outlet was sentenced to three years and six months in prison for the aforementioned incident involving the alleged misuse of a company vehicle for personal purposes.
Both the opposition and local non-governmental organizations, alongside international observers, unanimously declared Gvaramia’s arrest as politically motivated.
The case of the founder of Mtavari Arkhi was highlighted in the US State Department’s report. Sections of the document addressing political prisoners and freedom of speech discussed the arrest of Mtavari Arkhi’s CEO, Nika Gvaramia.
Citing Amnesty International, the White House noted that Gvaramia’s case exposed “an increased government influence over the courts in a number of cases,” aimed at suppressing critics and opponents.
Gvaramia was released from prison after one year and one month, on June 22, 2023. President Zurabishvili pardoned him. This pardon nearly cost Zurabishvili her presidency — in the fall of 2023, the Georgian Dream initiated impeachment proceedings against the president.
Experts point out that Gvaramia’s pardon became one of the main reasons authorities sought to punish Zurabishvili.
On June 29, 2023, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) awarded Nika Gvaramia the International Press Freedom Award.
Gvaramia is no longer the CEO of Mtavari Arkhi; he resigned from this position while still in prison and handed over the role to Giorgi Gabunia. However, despite Gvaramia’s claims of completely stepping away from managing the channel, given his influence and authority, it’s challenging to believe he’s entirely removed from its operations.
Currently, Gvaramia hosts the show “The main brain” on Mtavari Arkhi, which is Georgia’s equivalent of the British TV game show “Who wants to be a millionaire?”
Gvaramia consistently underscores a significant aspect of his identity – his roots in Sukhumi, Abkhazia, where he was born, and where he completed his schooling.
