Nodar Khaduri

Minister of Finance Nodar Khaduri. (Interpressnews.)

TBILISI, DFWatch–Minister of Finance Nodar Khaduri has sent out a special statement to ministry employees that makes clear what restrictions they must follow regarding election campaigning.

The statement concerns the Code of Conduct for public servants and includes a detailed list of responsibilities during the election campaign for the upcoming presidential election on October 27.

The statement says that people who are employed at the Ministry of Finance do not have a right to participate in campaigning during working hours. Along with the regular staff, restriction also apply to the heads of various departments and structural units.

Besides these limitations, the statement also says that between the day Election Day was announced and until the election results are presented, electoral subjects or candidates are prohibited from giving any kinds of presents, financial means or any other material valuables to Georgian citizens.

Furthermore, public servants are prohibited from using administrative resources to support any of the electoral actors. Furthermore, 60 days prior to Election Day it is prohibited to initiate new budgetary funded projects which weren’t already included in the state budget.

Neither individuals nor legal entities have the right to provide citizens with services which are under the competence of Georgian state agencies.

“The ministry of Finance, as a body of the executive branch, deems it important to support the governments’ priority of conducting a presidential campaign in a free and fair environment and is ready to fully comply with all the requirements provisioned by the legislation,” reads the statement of the ministry.

As mentioned in a discussion between NGO representatives hosted by DF Watch, there were some recommendations not taken into consideration. One of them is related to a wide range of public officials who still retain the right to participate in the election campagin.