Two days prior to the Constitutional amendments, on December 4, 2015, RA President Serzh Sargsyan promised Mayor of Gyumri Samvel Balasanyan, invited to the President’s Office, to confirm the loan of 23 million euros for street-building and street-lighting in the city of Gyumri. Moreover, during the conference, the President stated that he has invited Samvel Balasanyan for giving a fundamental solution to this issue. “It’s a very important issue because in the presence of a first-class Gyumri-Yerevan highway, people may wonder why the streets of Gyumri are not in good shape and why Gyumri overall has not become a well-developed town, even though recently, also after your election as Mayor of the town, we, in comparative terms, have been providing major funds for the development of Gyumri infrastructure. With this regard, and I believe it is necessary, I have already issued corresponding instructions, to involve resources – 23 million Euros, which will be directed to the development and illumination of Gyumri. If the town authorities, you personally promise that these funds will be used efficiently and up to the last dram will be spent for the beautification of Gyumri, you can start the process already on Monday. An office for the implementation of the program should be established expeditiously, and these works must be brought to a conclusion. To start and finish having in mind that when in 2018 we finish the construction of the Yerevan-Gyumri highway, Gyumri must already be in good shape,” said Serzh Sargsyan.
The President’s promise, of course, is encouraging primarily for Gyumri Mayor Samvel Balasanyan who was speaking only about this success for a long time being under the influence of this meeting. At the meeting with various guests and the press conferences, he was repeating that finally Gyumri will be saved from the mud and the Gyumri resident will begin a normal life. Despite all of this, residents of Gyumri continue to be drowned, in the literal sense of this word, in the mud of the streets, and the two days ago, they were disgraced as the guests arrived from outside to attend the world famous pianist Tigran Hamasyan’s concert in the “Fantanner” district had to jump through the mud. Day to day, the life in Gyumri is becoming unbearable. The residents of the cultural capital, especially in March and April months, have to arrest themselves at their homes as many of them do not have shoes to withstand the mud.
Eventually, why the loan does not reach the destination, and whether it was just a promise that sounded ahead to the constitutional amendments to extort “yes” from the Gyumri residents or not to deserve the harsh criticism by the residents of this city on the background of the amendments of the main law. We were told by Shirak regional administration (marzpetaran) that as it is a loan program, it must be approved by the National Assembly as the government gives the guarantee for the loan. Then, the name of the organization that is going to dispose it must be approved, afterward, the street should be chosen. After this selection, an announcement for the design should be made, which also include the drainage, improvement of sidewalk and street lighting projects, only after to announce a tender for the organizational works. “It requires a long way, it is not the case that we sit and say, why the President didn’t give the money.
If the President gave the money today, tomorrow an issue should be presented to public hearing: which street should be repaired: Sayat-Nova or Shirakatsy, on choosing the streets we must declare a Shirakatsy design tender, which must include drainage, lighting, pavement, landscaping lined with trees. Whoever wins the tender, only after having the design, first of all the quality, taste and most importantly, the price, only after that we will announce a tender for the builder and all of this requires time. If we start right now, we can start construction only in September. All of this has its own procedure for implementation, there is an implementation rule, there is a law, we all are in a hurry but this is the rule,” – we were explained from the Governor’s Office.
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Note that the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development had expressed willingness to provide grants and loans to the Government of Armenia for having street-building, modern street-lighting and drainage system in Gyumri. More than 5.3 million euros from the provided money is a grant, in other words, gratuitous money and the rest will be provided by the negligible rate – 1.8 percent per year.
Nune AREVSHATYAN
