THE SYMBOL OF THE MYSTERIOUS COUNCIL
Naira Khachatryan

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
25 Sep 2008
Armenia

A Lot To Depend On The Staff

During the three months of its activity the working group aimed at
the formation of the Public Council, has already elaborated the draft
of the charter of the newly established body.

During the press conference that took place in the institute of
political studies under the Presidential staff, the coordinator of the
group’s activity Garnik Isagulyan represented the implemented work:
"The country’s President has first received our committee, when the
decree was singed. The committee has worked without any mediation or
pressure. The second meeting with the President will be during the
appointment of the 12 members of the Public Council by the decree of
the President. They will get the relay of the works of the council’s
formation."

The elaborated document has already been submitted to Serge Sargsyan
and there have been no objections regarding the draft of the charter:
"I’m sure in the beginning of the next month the President will confirm
the charter by his decree. And the Public Council of the Republic of
Armenia will be formed in a manner prescribed by this charter.

One of the members of the committee, leader of Armenian Christian
Democratic Union Khosrov Harutyunyan, who also participated in the
press conference, informed the Public Council is rather small. It
consists of 36 members. And to avoid making it Yerevan Council it has
been decided to form committees. "We will have 12 committees belonging
to the Public Council, which will involve active participants of a
concrete sphere. The 1/3, that is to say 12 members will be appointed
by the President, the others will be elected by the public. In our
view this is the model that will give us a chance to combine the
President’s trust, on the one hand and the expectations of the public
on the other," Khosrov Harutyunyan believes.

The committees aimed at working in 12 spheres will elect the other 12
members of the Public Council. And the already appointed and elected
24 members of the council will elect the remaining 12. As regards
the chairman of the Public Council, according to the charter the
country’s President must appoint him."

"Why did we choose this number? In my view everyone knows the symbol
of 12 and 36 is the number of our alphabet. So we decided to have a
symbolic number," Garnik Isagulyan said.

According to the charter there are certain administrations and services
the representatives of which can’t become members of the council. MP’s
also can’t be included in the Public Council.

Arshak Sadoyan familiarized us with the principles of the formation
of the 12 committees. "As it has already been me ntioned besides the
council there is also a committee base. Each committee will consist
of 10-15 members. It will form a creative atmosphere of massive
participation. The chairman elected by the 12 committees will become
the members of the council. Thus 250 people will participate in the
public activity."