Epress.am News from Armenia
Arayik Sardaryan, a resident of the village of Tsaghkahovit in Armenia's Aragatsotn province, staged a protest outside the Government building Thursday, demanding that authorities look into the “unlawful acts” committed by former Aragatsotn governor Sargis Sahakyan and Tsaghkahovit village head Yervand Khachatryan.
The protester explained that in December, 2015, the Armenian government allocated new housing to villagers affected by a catastrophic earthquake in 1988. The majority of the newly constructed apartments, however, have been given to people who already own houses, Sardaryan claimed.
“One of the recipients is a farmer who has a two-storey house; there are also people who've already put the newly received apartment up for sale. Why would [authorities] allocate housing to them and overlook the people who really need one? I've been fighting for an opportunity to receive an apartment for years. I, along with my wife and my daughter who has been disabled from birth, have no permanent place of residence and live in extremely bad conditions. But we didn't receive an apartment since I, unlike the others, was unable to pay the former governor,” the man stated.
Sardaryan added that he had reported the alleged fraud and corruption to the prosecutor's office; however, officials subsequently replied that they had found out Sardaryan was not eligible for an apartment, leading them to conclude that there was "no crime committed."
“Instead of investigating the crime, the prosecutor's office sent me this absurd note. What does the corruption case have to do with my housing eligibility?” the protester complained.
Government Appeal-Complaints Department Head Alexander Ghazaryan came out today to speak with Sardaryan and assured that he would notify Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan about the issue. “[Ghazaryan] literally told me that he agreed with me. He said the case is 'disgraceful' and promised to review my appeal and convey it to the Prime Minister,” Sardaryan said.