ARMEN ASHOTIAN CONSIDERS LEVON TER-PETROSIAN’S NOMINATION AS POLITICAL AMBITION HAVING NO RELATION TO EXPECTED ADMINISTRATIVE WORK

Noyan Tapan

M arch 16, 2009

YEREVAN, MARCH 16, NOYAN TAPAN. Deputy of the RA National Assembly
"Republican Party of Armenia" (RPA) faction Armen Ashotian considers
the fact that the first president of Armenia Levon Ter-Petrosian will
lead the electoral list of the Armenian National Congress (ANC) at
the May 31 elections to Yerevan Council of Aldermen as the absence of
an alternative in the ANC in terms of the possibility of a political
figure’s victory.

"Secondly, I assess it as, so to speak, a decision worthy of
Solomon – concerning the internal debates about who will be the
first: no one will be the first because the first person is Levon
Ter-Petrosian. Thirdly, I assess this approach as a decision taken
under certain external political influences because there were no
facts about this decision prior to its being made public, even at
the March 1 meeting Levon Ter-Petrosian did not address this issue
at all," the deputy said, responding to a question of NT correspondent.

It was also mentioned that regardless of how much Yerevan elections
are being politicized, these are comminity elections, and not every
political figure is capable of being the head of a community so
A. Ashotian considers L. Ter-Petrosian’s nomination as "political
ambitions having no relation to the expected administrative work". "I
am sure that in case of being included in Yerevan Council of Aldermen,
many figures on the ANC’s list, including L.

Ter-Petrosian, will leave the Council because it is not their
place," A. Ashotian said.