YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 22, ARMENPRESS. Deputy Speaker of Parliament Eduard Sharmazanov (HHK) argues that by appointing officials from the previous government to office the incumbent government is accepting that there was no widespread corruption in the given sector.

“We don’t deny that corruption manifestations exist in Armenia, just like in any other country. But our new government said that the country was [extensively] looted, that widespread corruption existed. Is a widespread corruption possible without the army, without the presidential oversight service, without the NSS, police? If widespread ransacking exists in any state, then these bodies must be dunked in corruption. But now, the former oversight director, the former presidential oversight director, tax chief have been appointed to very high positions. If they’ve appointed, then these people are clean, then there was no corruption in these systems,” Sharmazanov said.

He argues that if Davit Tonoyan has been appointed defense minister, then there was no widespread corruption in the military. “They appointed Arthur Vanetsyan as NSS director, they did very well, but Arthur Vanetsyan was no secondary man, he was the deputy director of the NSS Yerevan department, therefore, if they appointed him, he hasn’t been in a corruption scandal,” he said.

“There cannot be a widespread looting in a country if high level officials aren’t involved in the widespread looting,” he concluded.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan