The first meeting of the Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP) parliamentary group has just finished. In response to a question of www.aravot.am what had been the reason for such a swift meeting and what issues had been discussed, Tigran Urikhanyan, a member of the party’s political council, said that the meeting had not been swift, it had been planned, “It was just necessary to make some clarifications and to exchange ideas before the first meeting of the 5th convocation of the parliament. It was basically the first plenary meeting. Mr. Tsarukyan welcomed all of us, wished a good mood and fruitful work. The Prosperous Armenia Party parliamentary group will represent vox populi in the parliament, we will put forward all the initiatives that were included in our pre-election program and are in the interest of the people. The Prosperous Armenia Party parliamentary group will be an alternative to the other political forces represented in the parliament.” In response to a question of www.aravot.am whether Gagik Tsarukyan had explained the decision to withdraw from the coalition, since there had been publications in the press that it was a surprise for the members of the PAP, Tigran Urikhanyan said, “We all thought and think that a coalition cannot be an aim in itself. Keeping the promises we made to our voters must be the goal, the ultimate goal. If some form of government doesn’t offer us an opportunity to fully fulfill our promises made to the people, to implement the projects that will be drawn up and put forward to the legislative body as the time goes by, then it is pointless to participate in it.” In response to the next question of www.aravot.am whether they had discussed whether the Prosperous Armenia Party would nominate its own candidate for the 2013 presidential election or would endorse someone else’s candidacy, the member of the PAP political council observed that their team would express its position when the respective political events approached.
By the way, some websites published preconditions that had been ostensibly put forward by Gagik Tsarukyan during his latest meetings with Serzh Sargsyan. According to the publications, the preconditions were rejected, that is why Gagik Tsarukyan refused to form a coalition. www.aravot.am inquired whether that information corresponded to the reality. Tigran Urikhanyan said that he hadn’t managed to read those publications, therefore, he would avoid expressing an opinion. He asserted at the same time that the internal democracy in the PAP was at a very high level and all decisions were made under those conditions.
Nelly GRIGORYAN
