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RAFFI HOVANNISIAN LAUNCHES PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN; URGES VOTERS TO GO TO THE POLLS
Hrant Gadarigian
http://hetq.am/eng/news/22520/raffi-hovannisian-launches-presidential-campaign;-urges-voters-to-go-to-the-polls.html
15:26, January 21, 2013
"I believe that our true Armenia is still in front of us"
Under a cloudy and cold Yerevan sky, Heritage Party leader Raffi
Hovannisian kicked off his presidential campaign today, calling on
fellow Armenian citizens to go to the polls on February 19 and finally
send the current president and his team packing.
A crowd of 300 or so Heritage Party activists, members of the press
and curious onlookers were on hand at the Aram Khachaturian statue
outside Yerevan's Opera House as Hovannisian crossed Tumanyan Street
by himself.
Shaking hands and chit-chatting as he made his way through the throng,
Hovannisian climbed the steps leading to the Opera House and launched
into a twenty-five minute speech castigating President Sargsyan and
the current regime for incompetence and neglecting the socio-economic
needs of the vast majority of average Armenian citizens.
Hovannisian urged his fellow citizens to believe that they could change
the reality on the ground in Armenia, calling them to take back the
reins of power from a regime that had done precious little to stem
the tide of migration, rising unemployment and the environmental
degradation of the country.
Listing his priorities if elected president, Hovannisian said he would
immediately cut the fact from the national budget, saving 50 billion
AMD. The candidate also promised to increase tax revenues by 250
billion by reining in the shadow economy. Such measures would allow for
a 50% rise in pensions and greater investment to the social sectors.
Hovannisian also declared that by cleaning the tax and customs sectors
of corruption and by putting in place a professional management team,
Armenia could attract 600% more in direct foreign investment which,
coupled with domestic investment, could realistically create 180,000
high paying jobs.
Pushing home his economic reform program, Hovannisian told the crowd
that by destroying the business monopolies in Armenia, which operate
with government backing, an annual growth rate of 10% during the next
five years is doable and that public sector salaries would also rise,
pulling 600,000 out of the clutches of poverty.
On the foreign affairs front, Hovannisian declared that he would
nullify the Turkish-Armenian protocols and would continue to seek
diplomatic relations with Turkey on a no preconditions basis. If
Turkey did not agree to such a framework, Armenia would set its own
preconditions for talks with Ankara.
The Heritage Party leader said he would sign an executive order
recognizing the independence of Artsakh.
Commenting on the need to stem emigration from Armenia, Hovannisian
said the establishment of the rule of law and true constitutional
governance would also encourage thousands of Armenians from the
diaspora to follow his lead and relocate to the homeland.
In a pointed challenge to President Sargsyan, Hovannisian declared
that if the ruling regime abused its administrative powers to promote
their candidate's re-election, he would publicly label the election
a fraud and illegitimate.
"If I or my election team spot any party campaign posters or Republican
Party emblems on any state or municipal building, well, that would
signal that this election is not free and fair," Hovannisian said.
Hrant Gadarigian
http://hetq.am/eng/news/22520/raffi-hovannisian-launches-presidential-campaign;-urges-voters-to-go-to-the-polls.html
15:26, January 21, 2013
"I believe that our true Armenia is still in front of us"
Under a cloudy and cold Yerevan sky, Heritage Party leader Raffi
Hovannisian kicked off his presidential campaign today, calling on
fellow Armenian citizens to go to the polls on February 19 and finally
send the current president and his team packing.
A crowd of 300 or so Heritage Party activists, members of the press
and curious onlookers were on hand at the Aram Khachaturian statue
outside Yerevan's Opera House as Hovannisian crossed Tumanyan Street
by himself.
Shaking hands and chit-chatting as he made his way through the throng,
Hovannisian climbed the steps leading to the Opera House and launched
into a twenty-five minute speech castigating President Sargsyan and
the current regime for incompetence and neglecting the socio-economic
needs of the vast majority of average Armenian citizens.
Hovannisian urged his fellow citizens to believe that they could change
the reality on the ground in Armenia, calling them to take back the
reins of power from a regime that had done precious little to stem
the tide of migration, rising unemployment and the environmental
degradation of the country.
Listing his priorities if elected president, Hovannisian said he would
immediately cut the fact from the national budget, saving 50 billion
AMD. The candidate also promised to increase tax revenues by 250
billion by reining in the shadow economy. Such measures would allow for
a 50% rise in pensions and greater investment to the social sectors.
Hovannisian also declared that by cleaning the tax and customs sectors
of corruption and by putting in place a professional management team,
Armenia could attract 600% more in direct foreign investment which,
coupled with domestic investment, could realistically create 180,000
high paying jobs.
Pushing home his economic reform program, Hovannisian told the crowd
that by destroying the business monopolies in Armenia, which operate
with government backing, an annual growth rate of 10% during the next
five years is doable and that public sector salaries would also rise,
pulling 600,000 out of the clutches of poverty.
On the foreign affairs front, Hovannisian declared that he would
nullify the Turkish-Armenian protocols and would continue to seek
diplomatic relations with Turkey on a no preconditions basis. If
Turkey did not agree to such a framework, Armenia would set its own
preconditions for talks with Ankara.
The Heritage Party leader said he would sign an executive order
recognizing the independence of Artsakh.
Commenting on the need to stem emigration from Armenia, Hovannisian
said the establishment of the rule of law and true constitutional
governance would also encourage thousands of Armenians from the
diaspora to follow his lead and relocate to the homeland.
In a pointed challenge to President Sargsyan, Hovannisian declared
that if the ruling regime abused its administrative powers to promote
their candidate's re-election, he would publicly label the election
a fraud and illegitimate.
"If I or my election team spot any party campaign posters or Republican
Party emblems on any state or municipal building, well, that would
signal that this election is not free and fair," Hovannisian said.