Epress.am News from Armenia
None of the member parties of the Armenian National Congress (HAK) has ever raised the issue of who will get what position if HAK assumes leadership of the country — except for two people, said HAK leader Levon Ter-Petrossian speaking from the podium at the second Q&A session organized by the opposition at LIberty Square since its supporters declared nonstop rallies beginning Sept. 30.
“One of them didn’t join our alliance during the election period, while the other didn’t join us in the post-election period. Even in the name of victory I have never made and won’t make such a deal.
“A striking example of this is Artur Baghdasaryan. It’s their style. They used this insidious deal of theirs on account of the state budget,” he said.
Recall, Baghdasaryan, the leader of the Rule of Law (“Orinats Yerkir”) party, came third in the 2008 presidential election. Previously a staunch Ter-Petrossian supporter, he was elected to parliament during Ter-Petrossian’s term on the HHSh (Pan-Armenian National Movement, HAK’s predecessor) ticket. He then defected and did not join the mass protests on the streets of Yerevan contesting the 2008 elections, instead joining the ruling coalition.
On the matter of its personnel policy where HAK to assume power, Ter-Petrossian said that it’s complicated by the fact that the Armenian people have not had the tradition of continuous statehood.
“This is a complex problem which does not occur in countries that have long continuous statehood. The European state structure was formed over hundreds of years. We come to power (and this will definitely happen, have no doubt), and after coming to power we have to strive for a meritocratic state, a state of those who are worthy. That is, the main principle will be the merit, the worth of officials. Whatever position an official is worthy of, he will assume that position and no more.
“Very few countries have managed to build a state of those who are worthy — China is one such state: it is the most classic example of meritocracy.
“Whoever you choose, they will be your government officials. But there will come a time when we cannot meet your demands. But we will have solved one important problem: the holding of fair elections. When you become dissatisfied with us, you can easily get rid of us. This is the kind of country I dream of,” the opposition leader summed up.