On August 21, the TV channel POSTV, which adhered to pro-government editorial policy, and the Facebook page, Gogaggg, disseminated the statement of Ana Dolidze, leader of the political party For the People, about car accidents. According to the information posted on Facebook, the politicians said: “Recently, there have been many car accidents in Georgia. We must change the government.”
POSTV disseminated Ana Dolidze’s statement in a manipulative way. At a press briefing held on the same day, the politician spoke about murders, violence, and fatal accidents, and mentioned traffic accidents, among other things; however, she did not say that due to the increasing number of car accidents, the government must be changed.
On August 21, Ana Dolidze, one of the leaders of the For the People political party and the Strong Georgia coalition, called a press briefing at 11:15 o’clock. She spoke about the statistics of fatal accidents, crime, murders, and the problem of violence against women and children. In this context, Dolidze mentioned car accidents and emphasized that the number of deaths in road accidents in Georgia is much higher than in European countries.
Ana Dolidze attributed the problems mentioned at the briefing to government negligence. In particular, she stated that the government does not pay attention to these problems, turns a blind eye, and is focused solely on “lining their pockets, securing tenders, and maintaining their positions.” Regarding road accidents, the politician believes that the Ministry of Internal Affairs does not pay attention to the so-called black spots, i.e., areas where car accidents frequently occur.
At the end of the briefing, Ana Dolidze, based on the mentioned problems, not only on the statistics of road accidents, stated that the choice in October should be made “in favor of the safety of all members of our families.”
During the briefing, Ana Dolidze never once said that “recently, there have been many car accidents in Georgia,” or that “we must change the government.” She spoke about the problem of safety in general and highlighted the government’s responsibility for it.
Ana Dolidze’s statement: “Let me mind you that around 500 people die as a result of road traffic accidents in Georgia, of which about 30 are children. This is ten times more than in any European country. […] The Ministry of Internal Affairs should take elementary steps to eliminate those so-called black spots, i.e., the very spots where road accidents occur.”
Spreading false and misleading information about opposition politicians is a common phenomenon. The dissemination of such news has intensified during the preelection period. The Myth Detector regularly monitors and verifies such news:
- Nika Gvaramia’s statement about Turkey is disseminated in a manipulative manner
- Manipulated video of “Lelo” members circulating on social network
- Manipulated Video of “Federalists” Political Party Circulates on Facebook
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