Public Defender addressed Mr. Aleksandre Chikvaidze, the Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia with a recommendation regarding lawfulness of Mr. Zaal Gagnidze’s dismissal from Border Police.

Mr. Zaal Gagnidze was dismissed from the position of Lead Specialist of Professional Training Department for Border Protection and Control of the Land Border Protection Department of Border Police - a state subordinate agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, on August 2, 2013, based on a disciplinary sanction.

On September 24, 2013, Public Defender received written notification from the Border Police that Zaal Gagnidze had been dismissed from his position due to inappropriate conduct that humiliates the authority of the system of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Moreover, Mr. Gagnidze had been dismissed on the bases of a report by the General Inspection Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

In case of administrative proceedings, an administrative body is obliged to investigate all significant circumstances of the case and to make the decision based on the counter evaluation and assessment of these circumstances. In addition, it is unacceptable to issue an individual administrative-legal act based on a circumstance or a fact that has not been examined by the administrative body in accordance to the law.

Public Defender regards that the report of the General Inspection Department of MIA does not provide proof that the circumstances, facts, evidence and arguments that served as bases for the decision had been examined or assessed.

According to the General Administrative Code of Georgia, “an administrative act should be nullified, if it contradicts the law or if the requirements for the process of its preparation or publication have been substantially violated.” Furthermore, an individual administrative-legal act will be considered void if it was based on a violation of law, non-existence of which would have led to a different decision.

Public Defender regards that the disciplinary sanction against Mr. Zaal Gagnidze in the form of his dismissal from the position, should have been imposed only after examination of all important circumstances and facts, through documentation of the assessment that served as bases for the decision in the administrative-legal act.

The fact that the Director of Border Police violated the requirements prescribe by law when making the decision, in other words during preparation and publication of the individual administrative-legal act, creates grounds for nullification of the individual administrative-legal act.