Pashinyan rejects existence of “Super-Prime Ministerial” system in Armenia

YEREVAN, MAY 8, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has emphasized that the current administration system in Armenia is not a so-called Super-Prime Ministerial one, referring to the powers vested in the prime minister after the country transitioned into a parliamentary system.

At a press conference today on the occasion of the 1st year in office as Prime Minister, Pashinyan was asked by ARMENPRESS whether or not the Government plans to change the “Super-Prime Ministerial” system, to which he answered that the so-called system doesn’t exist at all.

“How many times have the current developments taken place in Armenia during the past 30 years”, he asked in response. “Can you explain to me why the “Super-Prime Ministerial” machine is under the spotlight? The super-prime ministerial system isn’t only the laws and legal tools. A Super-Prime Minister is someone who says – you will import sugar and you will not. I’m giving the banana business to you, the petroleum business to another one, here this man must be elected mayor, this criminal case must be dropped or not and so on. This is a Super-Prime Ministerial system”, he said, denying its existence in present times.

“Have you seen a super-prime minister who testifies as a witness in court”, he asked.

“Some say this is a show. This isn’t a show, this is a demonstration of political will. The Super-Prime Ministerial system is eliminated in Armenia, because there cannot be a Super-Prime Minister in a democratic country,” Pashinyan said.

He said that a Super-Prime Ministerial system is when an individual or a group of people keep power and refuse to hand it over to someone else.

“I am saying that I don’t have power in Armenia, power belongs to the people. There can’t be a Super-Prime Minister in a country where power belongs to the people,” he said.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan