Tbilisi’s stormwater infrastructure problems are the result of corruption within the capital’s municipal government, according to Tazo Datunashvili, one of the leaders of the Lelo – Strong Georgia party. He made these comments on the TV Pirveli channel while reacting to Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze’s statement about the failure of the city’s drainage systems.
“Every day, especially when it rains, it becomes clear what corruption in Kaladze’s system looks like, and how Kaladze himself, Bidzina Ivanishvili, and this entire system pretend that the problem does not exist. Every time it rains in Tbilisi—and we have always had such rains in July—it is nothing unusual. Of course, the June 13 downpour was massive and catastrophic, but the current rainfall is completely typical for this time of year.
How is it possible to reconstruct entire streets, avenues, and neighborhoods, install waste containers worth 80,000 euros—from which waste is collected but cannot be recycled due to the lack of a processing plant, so it is still taken to a landfill as if in primitive times—and yet fail to build a basic stormwater drainage system?
Take Tsereteli Avenue, Chavchavadze Avenue, the Didi Digomi district—places where reconstruction was completed last year or the year before. Yet everyone pretends that this is normal.
When Kaladze comes out and says with a thoughtful look, as if he has just discovered an obvious truth, that the drainage system apparently does not work, the question arises: is this my fault, yours, or the viewers’? Why does Kakha Kaladze not bear responsibility at least for appointing the people who were supposed to supervise these works? Why is he not held accountable, at the very least, for potential criminal violations during tendering, quality control, and the city hall’s acceptance of these projects?” — Tazo Datunashvili stated.