Suppose I am a senior official (God forbid, of course), and a pensioner who receives 30 thousand drams pension per month approached me on the street and gives a rhetorical question, how can I pay my electricity bill. I try to be in the shoes of the official, 100 thousand drams here and there is of no importance to me. Anyway, I think instead of the official, I know that 3-5 thousand drams for the retiree is a serious amount of money.
“I do not bear direct responsibility for her condition, – I continue to think instead of the official, – what I have, I certainly have not earned by my righteous sweat, but I have not stolen anything from this specific woman. And then, even if I had relied on my wages, would it somehow contribute to further increase of pensions in Armenia. If these self-consoling and self-deception thoughts take the official far away, then he might resent, what do you want from me, hey woman, go and complain somewhere else.”
But in this case, the official would be condemned and reproached by the media. Consequently, a more populist version can be chosen, to send the woman with the driver or the assistant to the nearest post office and pay her 10-month electricity bill. The benefits of this version is that the woman will bless the official, “Oh, my king, only you are thinking about these people, should everybody be like you …”. The negative manifestation of the version is that the reputation of the person thinking about people would quickly spread out, and the next day, 10 pensioners would ask the same question on the street, and two days later, 100 of them. In that case, it is better to become a non-government MP and loudly, from the National Assembly, “think about the people” by feeling deep sorrow at the destruction of the country.
There is, of course, the official version. “I’m sorry, dear mother, that your situation is like that, but, you know, these are our budget resources so far. But we’re doing everything for all citizens of Armenia to receive decent pension and wages.” A rather “lukewarm” version, of which the pensioners might be hurt more than from verbal abuses.
The best solution, of course, is to avoid walking along the streets. And even better, avoid being an official.
ARAM ABRAHAMYAN
