Georgian Patriarchate rejects claims over Ilia II funeral spending

The Georgian Patriarchate has said that most of the funds allocated for the funeral of Ilia II, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, were not spent because organizations and individuals waived payments for various services.

Archpriest Andria Jaghmaidze, head of the Patriarchate’s public relations service, said the matter had been publicly clarified by Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze.

“Organizations and private individuals mostly waived fees and payments for various services. The prime minister publicly confirmed this, and I hope the use of the Patriarch’s name for unfounded accusations and slander will come to an end,” Jaghmaidze noted.

Earlier, Kobakhidze said 3 million lari ($1.154 million) had been allocated for Ilia II’s funeral, but only 722,000 lari ($277,729) was ultimately spent.

Ilia II, who led the Georgian Orthodox Church for decades, died earlier this year at the age of 93.

By Vafa Guliyeva