The statement that City Hall should pay Paata Burchuladze to rent a stadium was astonishing. I’ll pay for it myself, I’m ready — but not for Dinamo Stadium; I’ll rent some small, mini stadium instead, said the Secretary General of Georgian Dream and Mayor of Tbilisi, Kakha Kaladze, in a comment to journalists.

According to him, Dinamo Arena is under private ownership, and the City Hall has no involvement in organizing the event.

“It’s completely incomprehensible. Dinamo Arena is privately owned, so what does City Hall have to do with organizing the event?! The next statement was even more astonishing — that City Hall should pay Paata Burchuladze to rent the stadium. I’ll pay for it, I’m ready, but not for Dinamo, I’ll go for a smaller, mini stadium. I’m ready for that,” Kaladze stated.

For context, Paata Burchuladze appealed to Tbilisi City Hall to cover the rental cost of Dinamo Stadium for the October 4 gathering.

“Where would we get the money to pay for stadiums ourselves?” Burchuladze said on Palitra News’ program 360 Degrees.