Transparency International Georgia assessed the activities carried out by the City Council of Poti municipality (Hereinafter Poti City Council) in 2020. The report is based on the information requested and received from the City Council as well as the information published on the official website of the City Council, and on observations of our organization. The research covers the period of 2020. Transparency International Georgia evaluated [1]Poti City Council’s performance in 2020 as well. The study covered the period from November 2017 to 2019.

Main Findings

• Poti City Council exercised a weak oversight of the executive body and the legal entities founded by the municipality. The City Council, in most cases, formally controlled the activities of the officials and certain agencies accountable to it;
• The City Council of Poti has not identified a single case of the conflict of interests, incompatible activities, violation of the Rules of Procedure of the City Hall and the norms of ethics;
• During the reporting period, more than half (13 sessions) of the sessions (22 sessions) held by Poti City Council were extraordinary sessions;
• During the same period, Poti City Council adopted 30 resolutions, 27 of which were authored/initiated by the Mayor of Poti and 3 - by the commissions of the City Council;
• 13 public officials of Poti City Council were obliged to submit the asset declarations. 6 of them submitted incomplete asset declarations;
• None of 6 factions of the City Council submitted an initiative during the same period;
• The expenditures made by Poti municipality, which summed up to GEL 303,016, is greatly disproportional with the minimal performance of the factions;
• The Gender Equality Council operates in the City Council of Poti, however, similar to the previous period, the Gender Equality Council has not carried out the analysis of the legal acts nor has it provided the expertise on the draft legal acts. The Gender Equality Council has not submitted a statement, documentation or the information of any type to the City Council; 4
• During the research period, the members of the City Council were absent 140 times in total during the City Council sessions, including 134 absences - without a valid reason. The members of the City Council did not participate in the commission sittings 200 times, including 195 absences - without a valid reason;
• The Deputy Chairman of the Georgian Roots faction, Zurab Chachua, is the only one among the current members of the City Council, who has never exercised the right to speech at the sessions of the City Council. The members of the Georgian Dream faction, Apolon Bzhalva and Malkhaz Pochkhua, delivered speeches only once;
• 16 out of 25 members of the City Council have not delivered reports to the City Council;
• Among the members of the City Council, the Chairwoman of the Kolkheti faction, Maia Chkhartishvili, missed the most sessions (17 sessions) without a valid reason. The Deputy Chairman of the Kolkheti faction, Paata Chaganava, missed the most sessions (32 sessions) of commission without a valid reason. It should be noted that Maia Chkhartishvili and Paata Chaganava were among the members with most absences of the sessions of the City Council and commissions without a valid reason during the previous reporting period (From November 2017 to 2019);
• A total of GEL 1,293,800 was allocated for the City Council expenses in the 2020 budget of Poti municipality, out of which GEL 973,367 was spent on the remuneration. GEL 1,236 was given to several members of the City Council staff as a class-based salary bonus. 16.36 tonnes of fuel worth GEL 68,303 has been purchased as well;
• The Chairman of Poti City Council, Beka Vacharadze, spent up to 4 tonnes (3,896 litres) of fuel (worth GEL 9,530 in total) among the total volume expended by the City Council.