Aravot.am asked the Shirak Dashnak Governor Hovsep Simonyan whether during his 10 months in office he has tried to urge the prestigious Dashnak members abroad to support with the investors to Gyumri, to guide the entrepreneurs to come and set up a business here and the Gyumri residents would not be forced to go abroad to look for a job. “I have always thought that business does not have a party affiliation, the business has its own rules regardless of whether it is implemented by a Republican, Dashnak, Prosperous or someone else. But I agree with you on one thing, it seems like the defense of the motherland, people are going voluntarily knowing that they cannot return, so as the business, the business also has its risks.
I have always urged our fellow citizens regardless of political affiliation to come to the homeland. No matter where in the world they do businesses, anyway it has a degree of risk. Who could have imagined a few years ago that our wealthy Armenians could have problems in Syria or Iraq but they had? … I always think that we must try to use patriotism in the business if the profit should not be somewhere to a degree, let it be a little less but at least they would be able to serve their country. Of course, I have raised your question and it is being discussed.
We also must try to understand that today the person can come, express a willingness to invest a business but their business would not be suitable for our conditions. The business should not be brought and set up artificially. What were they doing years ago? They were bringing and setting up a business artificially, this business was not the one working by business rules, as a result, it failed and they were beginning to curse the state and the people, saying that they went and were cheated. This should not be the case, the business must work by the rules, we must go away from many things, make clear arrangements, let’s say this is the business, I can make this many concessions, beyond this, I cannot. We lay many things on the persons, we also condition the business by persons, if there is no person, his set up business does not exist.
But such a thing cannot happen, let me bring just an example, today, if you ask anyone in the world who is the owner of “Mercedes”, no one can say who is the owner, whose to own the shareholders do not care, they live a good life. While in our country, we do not say that we have this production, first of all, we say, the business of this person. We give the name of the owner and then talk about the business of the owner. We must try to appear in the reality,” said the governor.
To our question of whether there is someone who can come and tell you that he is ready to set up a business in Gyumri, Hovsep Simonyan replied that there are many people, simply he does not want to run ahead of time and name them. Shirak Marz Governor is convinced that Armenia is no longer a highly risky country for setting up a business; the government has elaborated a new approach which enables the businessman. “If someone demonstrates reluctance and wants to work with huge revenues, does not want to set up a business in the homeland, he must find fault with the government, curse and say that he was cheated. When we look at many issues deeper, indeed, there were bureaucratic messing but those times are gone, and most of the time, people are trying to justify their actions by discrediting the state and their own people. This is not right, and it had a serious impact to direct future investors to Armenia. Do you remember there was a boom when let’s say, someone who went to the US, he talked on TV and began defaming and discrediting this city and the country? They must understand the harm of their deed to their homeland. The big ones who used to think that they will never have a problem, when there is no small and medium, as a result, it comes their turn to disappear.
Today, everyone has already understood that everything must be natural. Now, of course, we have serious assignments, the prime minister came and publicly announced that those who have the desire and investment projects that are realistic. The state is ready to support and create all conditions so that people can create jobs. I once again urge the businessmen to come to their city and region an hour early and try to create a little opportunity in terms of jobs because loving the homeland in a distance is not quite right. I think that one should love the homeland from inside. We always talk about immigration but no beneficiaries have emigrated, people who are capable of work have emigrated, a man who is not capable of work will not emigrate, we keep him in the homeland.
The entrepreneurs of this city have emigrated but these people must understand that it is the time for them to return. Where is the patriotism?… How do we imagine the patriotism? We build the homeland, everything looks fine, they come here with their children to feast and go away? And thus consider that they love the homeland? I repeat again, I resemble organizing the production in the homeland with the defense of borders of the homeland, with fighting a war for the homeland. Yes, there is a risk factor. Where in the world is there no risk? But if today, the leader of the government announces that you are free to come and we will give all the opportunities, what else do you want, come and we will give you, trust us and believe us,” – says Hovsep Simonyan.
Nune AREVSHATYAN
