TI-Georgia Accuses Georgian Dream Of Concealing Scale of Elite Corruption
By Liza Mchedlidze
Friday, October 31, 2025
Transparency International Georgia has accused the ruling Georgian Dream party of concealing the true extent of elite corruption, saying recent charges against former officials are selective and politically motivated.
"Elite corruption was and remains much more widespread than the authorities are willing to admit," said Eka Gigauri, Director of TI-Georgia, during a press conference. "For years, we warned about this problem, but the government dismissed it as lies. Now they have been forced to acknowledge it."
Her remarks came after a series of corruption probes targeting former government members and their associates. Among those indicted is former Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, who faces money-laundering charges. He was later released on bail.
Gigauri argued that corruption has been deeply entrenched in the state system. "Investigative bodies, prosecutors, judges, and the security services have long protected those involved in corruption," she said. "In fact, the problem has been systemic and large-scale."
According to TI-Georgia's latest report, the organization has identified 250 cases of high-level corruption in the past five years, implicating more than 220 senior officials. These include dozens of ministers, MPs, judges, and local government leaders.
The watchdog estimates that individuals linked to the ruling party received around GEL 5 billion through rigged procurement deals over the last decade, with GEL 3.3 billion of that coming from regional budgets. In 2024 alone, after Irakli Kobakhidze became prime minister, GEL 1.1 billion worth of such contracts were issued.
One of the most notable cases involves businessman Otar Tateshvili, who allegedly secured GEL 650 million in state contracts after selling land to party founder Bidzina Ivanishvili in Abastumani. Another company, Serpentine, reportedly connected to Garibashvili's family members, obtained GEL 390 million in tenders between 2013 and 2025.
The report also details how party donors benefited from state aid programs, receiving GEL 71 million in subsidies and later donating GEL 7.7 million back to Georgian Dream. Companies linked to ruling party financiers allegedly won more than GEL 1 billion in public contracts during the 2020-2024 election cycle.
Other schemes, TI-Georgia said, involved the allocation of business permits to politically connected individuals. Among them were 29 small hydropower licenses given to Koka Kokolashvili, said to be related to Ivanishvili, as well as similar privileges granted to relatives of Environment Minister Davit Songulashvili.
The organization also pointed to the transfer of state property to loyalists. From 2013 to 2020, property worth GEL 13 million was privatized by individuals who later contributed GEL 2 million to the ruling party. Between 2021 and 2023, over 300 government decrees allowed state assets to be handed out directly, often for a token GEL 1, with no public access to related documents.
TI-Georgia further criticized the so-called "offshore law" adopted in 2024, estimating that it cost the state budget up to GEL 270 million in lost revenue. The law allowed offshore assets to be brought into Georgia without taxation, which, according to the group, primarily benefited Ivanishvili.
The report also revealed that senior officials declared GEL 34 million in gifts from family members in 2024-2025. "It appears that some officials are disguising illegal income as family gifts," the organization said.
Gigauri noted that TI-Georgia had filed 65 corruption cases with law enforcement agencies, including the Prosecutor's Office and the Anti-Corruption Bureau, but none received a response.
"The government's recent actions target individuals who have fallen out of favor," Gigauri said. "This is not a real fight against corruption - it is a show of control."
