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EDUARD SHARMAZANOV: "THERE'S NO GUARANTEE THAT ALL FRAUD WOULD BE ERADICATED IF ARMENIA TURNS TO PROPORTIONAL ELECTION SYSTEM"
Vestnik Kavkaza
http://vestnikkavkaza.net/interviews/politics/23293.html
Feb 20 2012
Russia
In his interview to VK, the vice-speaker of the Armenian National
Assembly, member of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia Eduard
Sharmazanov, commented on the party's preparations for the upcoming
presidential elections that are due to take place this May.
- Does the RPA expect to win a parliamentary majority once again? How
is the party preparing for the campaign? What are the main points of
its pre-election program?
- If we make all the necessary efforts, we have a chance of winning
the majority of votes. We have managed the crisis and the post-crisis
situation in our country and managed to restore our economy. Today the
GDP indicator is already growing, we have successful social programs.
Of course, some branches of the economy still have a lot of problems,
but we have the potential to resolve them. Each party wants to
become the parliamentary majority, but desire is not enough, one has
to have the proper potential. A lot of parties in Armenia aspire
to win the elections, but it is our party that decisively won the
2007 parliamentary and 2008 presidential elections. The results of
the latest community administration elections showed a high level
of popular trust in our party. Not only do we hope to become the
parliamentary majority again, we also aspire to increase our presence
in the parliament. In fact, today I don't see any other political
force in Armenia capable of winning a majority of the vote - and
polls show the same result.
- After the resignation of the parliamentary speaker, Ovik Abramyan,
it was declared that he will head the RPA's election headquarters. But
no further information is available for now...
- The headquarters is being formed now, and this process is being
supervised by Ovik Abramyan himself. It will become operational when
it is stipulated by the law. For now party meetings are not official
staff sessions: our party doesn't violate the law.
I won't be surprised if some new parties win some parliamentary seats.
We are not polling experts or sociologists, so we won't eat their
bread and try to predict the exact outcome of the elections; our
business is to provide the best pre-election agitation for the RPA.
- What flaws in its work is the RPA planning to correct after the
elections? Especially after budgetary taxation has been increased
in 2012?
- There is a myth that these additional 101 billion drams of the
budget will be gained by over-taxing the poor. This is very far from
the truth. Armenia has favorable conditions for medium-sized and small
enterprises. If we legalize the 'underworld' part of this business and
introduce efficient taxation, we can get ourselves the sum required.
As for flaws in our work, naturally, they exist. We are very concerned
about the level of corruption, the social polarization of society and
insufficient economic growth. Another pressing problem is the high
level of emigration. All these problems require time. We have never
denied the existence of the problems, and we are ready to fight them.
We already managed to increase pensions by 10%. We understand that
it's not enough and we keep looking for a way to increase them again.
Some political forces promise to increase them by 10 times right away.
It's very easy to promise, but it would be quite interesting if these
forces would actually explain how they are going to accomplish that.
- RPA's coalition partner, the "Prosperous Armenia" party, has recently
taken up a position that can't be called a friendly one towards
your party. Do you expect them to join the coalition again after the
elections and to support Serge Sargsyan in the 2013 presidential run?
- Being in the coalition isn't the principle political aim of
its members. But I think that 'Prosperous Armenia" will join
the new coalition, as it has already signed the new coalition
memorandum, stating that it's ready to support Sargsyan in the
upcoming presidential elections. The party hasn't made any other
official statements yet. Officially we act together. I don't know
about "Prosperous Armenia", but after Serge Sargsyan declared that
business and politics should be separated, the RPA decided to exclude
businessmen from its proportional voting lists. Businessmen will have
a chance to participate in the elections within the first-past-the-post
system at a local level.
- How would you comment on this paradox: all the opposition parties say
that the elections will be rigged, yet all of them plan to participate
in it.
- I think it's not serious: to say that the elections, which haven't
been held yet, are already rigged. If the opposition wants truly honest
and transparent elections, it shouldn't sink to cheap populism and
make irresponsible claims like that. It seems that the opposition is
planning to take part in the 'rigged' elections only to say that the
people have been 'deceived' afterwards, after actually loosing the
election. Such an approach has nothing to do with true democracy. I
think that if our opposition continues to behave in such a manner,
even the foreign observers would understand that these claims are
nothing but an attempt to cover their own incompetence.
But of course, there are some adequate opposition politicians in
Armenia who chose the constitutional way of political competition. For
now the opposition forces have allegedly united themselves around the
idea of a 100% proportional election system. I think this demand is
nothing but a PR-move. The project has already been discussed by the
parliament, and there was no fuss around it back then. I don't think
that changing the first-past-the-post system is a top priority for
Armenia right now. Both systems have their pros and cons, and there's
no guarantee that all fraud would be eradicated if Armenia turns to
a proportional election system. The only thing that can grant the
transparency of any elections is political will - the authorities in
Armenia have this will, but does the opposition?
Interview by David Stepanyan, exclusively to VK .
Vestnik Kavkaza
http://vestnikkavkaza.net/interviews/politics/23293.html
Feb 20 2012
Russia
In his interview to VK, the vice-speaker of the Armenian National
Assembly, member of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia Eduard
Sharmazanov, commented on the party's preparations for the upcoming
presidential elections that are due to take place this May.
- Does the RPA expect to win a parliamentary majority once again? How
is the party preparing for the campaign? What are the main points of
its pre-election program?
- If we make all the necessary efforts, we have a chance of winning
the majority of votes. We have managed the crisis and the post-crisis
situation in our country and managed to restore our economy. Today the
GDP indicator is already growing, we have successful social programs.
Of course, some branches of the economy still have a lot of problems,
but we have the potential to resolve them. Each party wants to
become the parliamentary majority, but desire is not enough, one has
to have the proper potential. A lot of parties in Armenia aspire
to win the elections, but it is our party that decisively won the
2007 parliamentary and 2008 presidential elections. The results of
the latest community administration elections showed a high level
of popular trust in our party. Not only do we hope to become the
parliamentary majority again, we also aspire to increase our presence
in the parliament. In fact, today I don't see any other political
force in Armenia capable of winning a majority of the vote - and
polls show the same result.
- After the resignation of the parliamentary speaker, Ovik Abramyan,
it was declared that he will head the RPA's election headquarters. But
no further information is available for now...
- The headquarters is being formed now, and this process is being
supervised by Ovik Abramyan himself. It will become operational when
it is stipulated by the law. For now party meetings are not official
staff sessions: our party doesn't violate the law.
I won't be surprised if some new parties win some parliamentary seats.
We are not polling experts or sociologists, so we won't eat their
bread and try to predict the exact outcome of the elections; our
business is to provide the best pre-election agitation for the RPA.
- What flaws in its work is the RPA planning to correct after the
elections? Especially after budgetary taxation has been increased
in 2012?
- There is a myth that these additional 101 billion drams of the
budget will be gained by over-taxing the poor. This is very far from
the truth. Armenia has favorable conditions for medium-sized and small
enterprises. If we legalize the 'underworld' part of this business and
introduce efficient taxation, we can get ourselves the sum required.
As for flaws in our work, naturally, they exist. We are very concerned
about the level of corruption, the social polarization of society and
insufficient economic growth. Another pressing problem is the high
level of emigration. All these problems require time. We have never
denied the existence of the problems, and we are ready to fight them.
We already managed to increase pensions by 10%. We understand that
it's not enough and we keep looking for a way to increase them again.
Some political forces promise to increase them by 10 times right away.
It's very easy to promise, but it would be quite interesting if these
forces would actually explain how they are going to accomplish that.
- RPA's coalition partner, the "Prosperous Armenia" party, has recently
taken up a position that can't be called a friendly one towards
your party. Do you expect them to join the coalition again after the
elections and to support Serge Sargsyan in the 2013 presidential run?
- Being in the coalition isn't the principle political aim of
its members. But I think that 'Prosperous Armenia" will join
the new coalition, as it has already signed the new coalition
memorandum, stating that it's ready to support Sargsyan in the
upcoming presidential elections. The party hasn't made any other
official statements yet. Officially we act together. I don't know
about "Prosperous Armenia", but after Serge Sargsyan declared that
business and politics should be separated, the RPA decided to exclude
businessmen from its proportional voting lists. Businessmen will have
a chance to participate in the elections within the first-past-the-post
system at a local level.
- How would you comment on this paradox: all the opposition parties say
that the elections will be rigged, yet all of them plan to participate
in it.
- I think it's not serious: to say that the elections, which haven't
been held yet, are already rigged. If the opposition wants truly honest
and transparent elections, it shouldn't sink to cheap populism and
make irresponsible claims like that. It seems that the opposition is
planning to take part in the 'rigged' elections only to say that the
people have been 'deceived' afterwards, after actually loosing the
election. Such an approach has nothing to do with true democracy. I
think that if our opposition continues to behave in such a manner,
even the foreign observers would understand that these claims are
nothing but an attempt to cover their own incompetence.
But of course, there are some adequate opposition politicians in
Armenia who chose the constitutional way of political competition. For
now the opposition forces have allegedly united themselves around the
idea of a 100% proportional election system. I think this demand is
nothing but a PR-move. The project has already been discussed by the
parliament, and there was no fuss around it back then. I don't think
that changing the first-past-the-post system is a top priority for
Armenia right now. Both systems have their pros and cons, and there's
no guarantee that all fraud would be eradicated if Armenia turns to
a proportional election system. The only thing that can grant the
transparency of any elections is political will - the authorities in
Armenia have this will, but does the opposition?
Interview by David Stepanyan, exclusively to VK .