Reshuffles in the Government

According to the decisions of the Prime Minister Tigran Sarkisian, November 9, Vice Minister of Health Tatul Hakobyan and Abraham Manukyan, in accordance with their own statements, were exempted from their positions. The resignation of two of four deputy of the ministry, may be caused to wonder if they were not preceded by an address by Prime Minister Tigran Sarkisian’s cabinet meeting on November 4, in which he gave a series of recommendations some ministries, including health managers.

“In recent years, complaints and trends that are observed in the education and health sectors, have become an alarming and dangerous. Corruption in these two areas deepened. This is confirmed by analysis that became available to the public, and the results of our analysis and the work of our inspection services, “- said the prime minister.

Minister of Health was requested within 10 days to submit proposals to the prime minister “until the staff changes – from the chief of staff to Vice-Minister, who participate in these functions, but are not actively struggling with these phenomena.” The Prime Minister also said: “These are the first steps in this direction: the personnel changes. If the situation does not improve, we must take more drastic steps. ”

According to some publications in periodicals in Yerevan, one of the Vice-Minister of Health Tatul Hakobyan informed that he had regularly tempted to resign, because the relationship with the minister were strained: “In recent years, working atmosphere and relationships in the ministry began for me was unacceptable and intolerable,” – he said the newspaper “Armenian Time”, not wishing to clarify on what kind of atmosphere in question. However, he noted that the words “in recent years” are referring to the period after his appointment as Minister Harutyun Kushkyan (2007). Also apply to the rumors that have resigned two deputies, one of the few non-partisan, simply become scapegoats.

At the same session, the Government instructed the Minister of Education within 10 days to submit “a clear and understandable plan that we are no longer faced with the phenomena of corruption in the education system up to the personnel changes.”

Particular attention is the prime minister paid a phytosanitary issues. “It’s no secret that there are many complaints in this area, and we recently with the Minister of Agriculture examined the report of the Control Service of the Prime Minister for research”, – said Tigran Sargsyan: According to him, “and agencies involved in licensing and Plant Health Inspection Ministry of Agriculture, to put it mildly, did not properly fulfill their responsibilities to verify the objects involved in the sale of pesticides, “because, in contrast, the verification office of the Prime Minister has found violations in all sites. As a result, the head of the department of licensing was suspended from work.

Then, voiced criticism of the Ministry of Finance. “For two years we say that the loans should be available to the border areas. Moreover, we confirmed with you the program and contributed funds to the interest rates on loans in the border areas subsidized by the state, i.e. that our farmers have the opportunity to receive interest-free loans. For two years this program has been implemented with serious omissions “- the Prime Minister said, adding that this applies to office programs in the Ministry. In this regard, the Minister had been instructed within 10 days submit to the Government decision to do structural changes and personnel issues. Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Finance of Armenia on October 9 Shahnazaryan told Radio Liberty that he had been dismissed by Director of the Office programs (ESP) Araik Mouradian, and his place was appointed the new director. According to chief of staff, developed a decision of the Government on structural changes in the PIU.

Gayane MELIKYAN