Municipality of Poverty-Stricken Gyumri ‘Spends Lavishly’ on Office Supplies: Press

The Gyumri-based Asparez newspaper reports on the “lavish spendings” of the city’s mayor’s office in 2015 and 2016, emphasizing the difference between the value of the goods purchased by the office and their actual market prices.

According to the paper, the Gyumri municipality spends over 9 million drams annually on stationery supplies alone, of which 6 million 720 thousand is spent for the purchase of A4 size paper. Thus, in 2015 the mayor’s office bought each box of A4 papers for 2,400 drams, while the most expensive box in Gyumri’s stationery stores costs 2,000 drams, and the cheapest one – 1700 drams. The sum spent on A4 paper remained the same in 2016.

Among other purchases, Asparez continues, the municipality has bought 50 faucets every year, each for 5500 drams. In both 2015 and 2016, the office bought electrical tees and power cords in various shapes and sizes for a total amount of 705 thousand drams.

In 2015, they bought 8 million drams worth of office equipment and furniture: 4 managerial chairs – 58 thousand drams per piece, 6 adjustable desk chairs – 40 thousand per piece, 9 laptops – 290 thousand per piece, 20 cabinets – 58 thousand per piece, and one TV set worth 380 thousand drams. In 2016, the sum spent on office equipment was doubled.

Asparez has inquired of the municipality whether it was sensible to spend such large amounts of money on office supplies, considering the city’s high poverty rate. The answer they have received, according to the paper, “is quite insubstantial.” “The spendings in question ensure the normal operation of the municipality,” the office replied.