The head of the “Public Voice” faction, Vahan Avagyan, attended a meeting at the Investigative Committee yesterday. During a press briefing that followed, he responded to queries from journalists, although he refrained from providing elaborate details.
In Avagyan’s words, “Yes, I was at the investigative office yesterday, but I’m not at liberty to disclose the reasons. The information is confidential and I don’t want to create unnecessary hype by answering those questions.”
When it was suggested that the former leader of the party, Vardan Ghukasyan, may have exerted pressure on him, Avagyan had a lot to say. Said he, “From the get-go, Vardan Ghukasyan and I had an agreement about the content of this session. However, due to numerous disagreements cropping up, we found ourselves having to revise the agreement every 15 minutes, to the point of deciding not to go. I suspect that the members of our faction got in touch with our leader. I was told in no uncertain terms: ‘you are not going, you are boycotting.’ Moreover, they were also given a condition: ‘you do not go until the very end, until the municipality is destroyed.’ They warned us, ‘If you go, this will happen’, and they even resorted to blackmail. But this is no longer just blackmail, it’s a serious matter, a form of terror. The relevant authorities should address and deal with these issues.”
The Yerevan Council of Elders is convening an extraordinary session today to discuss the early termination of the powers of five opposition members of the Council of Elders. The ruling factions were short of just one vote to strip the opposition of the mandate, but the quorum was secured by the attendance of Vahan Avagyan, the head of the “Public Voice” faction, and Vahe Yesayan, a faction member.
The former leader of “Public Voice”, Vardan Ghukasyan, announced yesterday that none from “Public Voice” will participate in the Council of Elders’ session.
He stated, “We are boycotting all meetings of the Yerevan Municipality, without exception. Tigran Avinyan will not be able to convene any session. Yerevan will slip out of the CP’s hands and new elections will be held.”
Avagyan responded to this today, stating, “The president of our party is Artak Galstyan.”
