“As early as in December 2010, the President made a more policy-related, comprehensive and strong speech, if I am not mistaken during a holiday event organized by the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA). That speech of the President was more coherent, strong, critical and full of facts, which could compete with the most critical and policy-related speech of the opposition,” Ruben Hakobyan, the leader of the Heritage Party parliamentary group said about the consultation in the Cabinet on Saturday and the President’s criticism during a conversation with www.aravot.am. Our interlocutor recalls that back then, he made a comment that time would tell whether it was just PR, just a speech or an action plan. “Unfortunately, as we have witnessed, it was just a speech, nothing more and didn’t aim at comprehensive struggle against corruption,” Mr. Hakobyan asserts today adding, “As for this speech, it must be backed up by action. I repeat that that speech was more policy-related than this one, since it was about all areas. In this speech, only 30 percent of the problems were mentioned.”
The enthusiasm of some people that the President found the guilty and it was the head of the Cabinet and that’s it, the problems will be solved is incomprehensible for Ruben Hakobyan, “I don’t think that anyone who has anything to do with the political reality of Armenia and who doesn’t pursue private interests and wants to understand what is going on in the country and where one must find solutions should be enthusiastic about that. At the end of the day, it is still in question for me whether the political majority and the President have taken on a specific task to eliminate corruption, which has really struck and continues to strike our state and doesn’t allow the state and the statehood to mature, or not. If they have taken on such a task, if the President, the political majority – including the Prime Minister – and the parliament decide to solve this problem, we will succeed and I can surely say that the Heritage Party will honestly support the implementation of that very important program. If they just need a scapegoat to show that we have appeared in such a bad condition because of someone, we will continue to enjoy our share of corruption, as my friend, a composer, would say. Because those 10-15 people who control the whole financial and economic system of the state, the industry and construction and all the rest are members of the President’s entourage and I don’t think that if there is no political will on the part of the President and the ruling majority, no one will take any step at the behest of Tigran Sargsyan or be punished or give up on those kickbacks and other things, which are elements of corruption.”
Our interlocutor thinks that the state is in a really bad condition and in order to overcome this condition, first of all, the President and the political majority should have the political
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will to eliminate corruption. “If they don’t agree and it is just about a scapegoat, I think the state will rather suffer than gain as a result of that.”
Nelly GRIGORYAN
