PAP still a force in Armenia’s political field – analyst

Member of parliament from PAP Naira Zohrabyan was elected as the head of the party at Thursday’s election. Zohrabyan said the party has moved into opposition. Zohrabyan was nominated by PAP ex-leader tycoon Gagik Tsarukian. 

“Formally PAP remains a party, and whether PAP wants it or want, it should do something in the political field,” Demirchyan said. A lot depends on the party’s own perceptions of future activities and will Tsarukian continue financing it or not, according to the analyst. 

PAP will play a certain role in Armenia’s political life, and time will show what role it will be, Demirchyan said. 

Tsarukian’s statement saying he will have nothing to do with the PAP anymore may mean that he will stop funding, the analyst said. 

The expert also said the PAP has not played special role in the political life since the 2013 presidential elections, when the party refused to run for president, but started demanding a snap election one and a half year later. This was the beginning of the end, according to Demirchyan. 

Speaking on February 12 at a meeting of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia, president Serzh Sargsyan criticized harshly the leader of Prosperous Armenia party tycoon Gagik Tsarukian and said Tsarukian, as a political actor, is an evil for the country. The president signed a decree withdrawing Tsarukian from the national security council due to his systematic failure to attend the council meetings. The president also instructed to look into cases of the tycoon’s absence in the parliament sessions and the rumors about his tax evasion. 

The leader of the Prosperous Armenia, in turn, said the reason for the president’s statements is his refusal to contribute to the reproduction of the political power through a constitutional reform. In particular, the tycoon said he refused to become a president after the country turns to parliamentary form through constitutional amendments. 

PAP was going to hold a rally on February 20, together with two other opposition parties, Armenian national Congress and the Heritage, but cancelled the rally later. PAP leader Gagik Tsarukian urged people to solve problems only through peaceful, legal and political means. 

Prosperous Armenia, a moderate centrist liberal-leaning party, was established in April 2004 by Gagik Tsarukyan, a prominent entrepreneur. In the 2012 parliamentary elections, the party won 36 of 131 seats in the National Assembly forming the second biggest faction here. According to some estimates, Tsarukian is one of the top three richest men in the country. –0--