Rustavi 2 CEO: Collection of TV Channel’s Accounts Absolutely Irresponsible

"This is an absolutely irresponsible decision, as it can lead to the interruption of the TV channels’ operation," Paata Salia, Director General of the Rustavi 2 TV Company, said in response to the collection of the TV company's accounts.

He calls on the Ministry of Finance not to use such measures in the future and says that the management of the TV company will try to pay off its debts.

“We received a notification that our bank accounts had been collected on the basis of an order from the Revenue Service. This is the result of the warning we received two days ago. Our position remains unchanged, I consider this is a completely irresponsible act, as this may cause a delay in the TV channel’s operation. We, the management, are doing everything we can to prevent this from happening and to save our channel from being paralyzed ahead of the New Year,” Salia said.

The accounts of Rustavi 2, TV Pirveli and Caucasia have been collected.

As Nino Jangirashvili, director of the Caucasia TV writes on social media, the above move practically means a suspension of the TV channels.

“Thank you, government. This practically means a suspension of the TV channels, because the organization will not be able to perform any operation. Let me remind you once again that Ivanishvili's TV channels, Imedi, Rustavi and Maestro, owe the budget 55 million and no one is going to shut them down because of this. I don't even have to say anything. Everything is already clear,” Jangirashvili says.

The Ministry of Finance of Georgia released a statement earlier, warning the channels that have accumulated state debt to pay it off. 

“On August 14, 2019, the Minister of Finance, Ivane Machavariani, publicly addressed TV broadcasters about the tax debt accumulated over the years and called on them to submit proposals for debt restructuring and also to start paying off the current debts.

"The Revenue Service and the broadcasters are still continuing the process of negotiation over the debt restricting, as for the current tax liabilities, the channels have not covered their debt and thus, the Revenue Department has to take the measures according to the rules set by the Tax Code of Georgia.

"The Ministry of Finance recognizes that media outlets play an important role in democratic development and therefore the government took its interests into full consideration and the concession on the tax debt accumulated over the years and the ongoing negotiations over the debt restructuring prove it. The tax authority is not obliged to give public notice to the taxpayer about the measures provided by the Tax Code and this statement of the Ministry of Finance also means that the Ministry considers the interests of the TV broadcasters.

"At the same time, such a concession to media outlets creates a non-competitive environment.

"The state is obliged to protect the interests of all taxpayers and manage public finances, which means that the taxpayers’ money should be spent on each citizen, the state," reads the statement of the Ministry of Finance which was released on Monday.

By Ana Dumbadze 

Related Story: Ministry of Finance Releases a Statement Regarding the Debt of TV Companies