TWO PEOPLE HOLD 17 PERCENT OF THE GDP OF ARMENIA

Lragir
Dec 21 2007
Armenia

The ex-prime minister of Armenia Hrant Bagratyan calculated and stated
December 21 at the Hayeli club that two persons hold 17 percent of
the GDP of Armenia: Robert Kocharyan and Serge Sargsyan.

"How can such a president or such a prime minister rule neutrally
in such a country?" Hrant Bagratyan stated, noting that with this
status Serge Sargsyan could not be a defense minister, then a prime
minister, and afterwards become a president because he has possessions,
businesses which will prevent him from ruling neutrally.

However, Hrant Bagratyan’s judgments are not based on evidence but
judgments on what has happened.

"For the president, he is engaged in banking, he controls a large
share of import. He directly controls at least two banks. He has an
important role in mining, construction," Hrant Bagratyan says. He gives
the example of privatization of the copper and molybdenum factory. In
2004 the factory was sold for 132 million dollars, while the annual
profit of the factory exceeds this sum several times. "I think the
interests of the president and the ruling clan featured in this deal,"
Hrant Bagratyan says, noting that otherwise no such deal would be made,
especially on a condition of payment of 132 million dollars in three
years for a factory with an annual one billion dollar of turnover.

Hrant Bagratyan says it is not the same as the Azerbaijani oil but
the price of molybdenum grows faster than oil’s, and for Armenia the
factory of Zangezur is one fourth of the value of the Azerbaijani oil
but this potential is wasted. As to Serge Sargsyan, Hrant Bagratyan
points to Armavia among the prime minister’s possessions. "Nobody
is so ingenuous. If Baghdasarov were not the government’s protege,
Serge Sargsyan’s or Robert Kocharyan’s, he would not be its owner. Its
predecessor was the Armenian Airlines which had 30 flights a month.

The annual number of passengers was 900 thousand to 1 million 100
thousand. Assume 1 million. The average price of a ticket is 300
dollars. In other words, its assets total 300 million dollars,"
Hrant Bagratyan says, noting that Armavia was privatized for 0 dollar.

As to the question of reporters whether under the former government
when Levon Ter-Petrosyan was president, and he was prime minister,
there was no protectionism, Hrant Bagratyan says Levon Ter-Petrosyan,
him, and the ministers did not run businesses. "It may sound ambitious,
but I think only the former government can speak about honesty," Hrant
Bagratyan says. He also stated that if Ter-Petrosyan comes to power,
he will have a point in his program that a person, a businessman,
who is appointed to a high-ranking post, lends his property to the
government til the end of his office.