Pashinyan: Are Armenian President and Prime Minister Worthy of Salary Increase?

Are high-ranking state officials in Armenia worthy of a wage increase? Armenian National Congress MP Nikol Pashinyan asked this question to Minister-Chief of Staff of the RA Government Vache Gabrielyan today during discussion of a bill in the National Assembly on remuneration of persons in public office.

The opposition MP quoted an excerpt from the draft law, which proposes to increase the Armenian president’s salary by 203%; the prime minister’s and parliamentary speaker’s salaries, by 218%; and MPs, by 100%. Gabrielyan responded by saying that the people have to decide whether officials deserve higher wages.

“It is my understanding that the will of the employer, [that is,] the people, is expressed in the decisions of the National Assembly. The matter will be decided in this hall,” said Gabrielyan.

“The problem is that the will of the people is not expressed in this hall,” countered Pashinyan. According to him, evidence of this is the decision adopted by parliament today to eliminate the 18,000 AMD (about $45 USD, monthly and per person) unemployment benefits.

In discussing the matter of increasing state officials’ salaries, Gabrielyan advised lawmakers not to forget that increasing wages can eliminate the risk of corruption.