“The country has become the Republic of the Republican Party, and the Cabinet has become a Republican Party Cabinet,” Zoya Tadevosyan, a representative of The People’s Power socio-political initiative and a member of the Armenian National Congress (ANC) party, described the newly appointed Cabinet during a conversation with www.aravot.am. She stated that one shouldn’t expect anything new from this Cabinet and went into detail: “What will the Cabinet benefit from a few new changes. At the end of the day, no one new has appeared in the Cabinet. I would like changes to be made, but a wish is one thing, the reality is another. We cannot disregard the experience of the past few years.” Anahit Bakhshyan, a member of the Heritage Party, considers this Cabinet to be “a Cabinet ensuring emigration.” She doesn’t pin hopes on this Cabinet and adds: “Regardless of the fact that the Cabinet is 100-percent RPA now, and it was a coalition of the Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP), the RPA, and the Rule of Law Party (RLP) in the past, nothing changes as a result. It will be worse now for sure. However, I don’t relate it to the RPA’s having more portfolios in the Cabinet than before. In reality, all of them are of the same kidney. This is a systemic issue; the system is cruel toward our citizens. I have heard the lofty speech the heartless and soulless president not seeing or concealing the reality made, welcoming the Cabinet that the Cabinet had been successful etc. I was listening and wondering whether he personally believed what he was saying. Perhaps he doesn’t know the reality and believes what he says so much.” Gagik Minasyan, a Republican MP and the chairman of the National Assembly Fiscal, Budgetary, and Economic Issues Commission, doesn’t know why others have such an opinion.
With regard to the relationship between the Cabinet’s work and the political monopoly, Mr. Minasyan said: “The Cabinet carries out its programs, which are approved by the National Assembly. And the ministers who make up the Cabinet are ministers of a coalition Cabinet. If other political forces don’t accept that program, how can they be involved in the Cabinet? What is strange in that?” We inquired how he would describe the new Cabinet. G. Minasyan stated in response: “This is a Cabinet that can carry out the programs it is assigned.”
Tatev HARUTYUNYAN
