My peers and I have spent a significant part of the conscious life in a country, which was called the “Soviet”. In this country, by conception, people should give advice to each other on how to live, take advice before making any decision. In the word “Soviet”, the particle “viet” is a Slavic root, which means a “decision”, “will”, and the particle “so” showed joint and united being of given decision. Actually, of course, there was no unity or compatibility. The advice of different level did not decide anything. Decisions were made by political bodies, of which the top was the “Politburo”, in my conscious life it consisted of over 70-year-old mentally retarded.
With the 1995 Constitution, the councils in Armenia collapsed. In fact, the main draft law was “pickaxed” by the opposition, exactly with the same arguments as now. “How dared these tyrant and plundering ANM members to pass a Constitution? Definitely they want to extend their power.” After that, the ANM power extended another three years, but the councils as a form of governance disappeared.
But other types of councils came to replace them, which are too costly on our state budget and our children and grandchildren will continue paying for such councils for many years. The matter is about the so-called consulting services delivered by various countries and international organizations. When they give us a loan or a grant, they invest these lavish expenditures into the budget, which mostly covers their own experts’ travel costs and hotel fees and, by our standards, astronomical salaries. The efficiency of such councils is sometimes strongly doubtful. For instances, when Zimbabwe gardeners, with 224 thousand dollars, teach our local gardeners how to grow apricots. I wonder, what percent do the expenditures of our 4.5 billion national debt for such councils make?
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As far as we continue to some extent be a country of councils, I would give a piece of advice to our MPs, moreover, absolutely free. Pass a law saying that the component of consultation in earmarked grant or, moreover, loan project shall not make more than 1 percent of the budget. Otherwise, they give 40 million dollars, of which 4 million dollars goes for consultancy. If it is a “kickback”, let them say so.
ARAM ABRAHAMYAN
