CONTROL CHAMBER OF ARMENIA REVEALS FINANCIAL VIOLATIONS AT ORGANIZATIONS UNDER JURISDICTION OF RA MINISTRY OF CULTURE

Noyan Tapan
July 2, 2009

YEREVAN, JULY 2, NOYAN TAPAN. The Control Chamber (CC) of Armenia
conducted checks on the use of budgetary allocations and the management
of state property at the RA Ministry of Culture in 2007-2008, as a
result of which a number of violations, including financial ones,
have been revealed, is said in the report approved at the June 30
sitting of the CC Board.

The Chairman of the Control Chamber Ishkhan Zakarian said at a
press conference following the sitting that finacial violations
of a total of 61.499 million drams were revealed through analysis
of the documents regarding authenticity of expenditures on several
programs at the expense of allocations of the government’s reserve
fund in the indicated period. This money, including 14.9 million
drams allocated for Sayat-Nova opera which was not staged in 2006,
is subject to repayment to the state budget.

Violations of 24 million drams were revealed at some state
noncommercial organizations under the jurisdiction of the ministry
of culture. In particular, 19.96 million drams for the development
of legal acts was transferred to the Yerevan subsidiary of a UK-based
company in an offshore zone. According to I. Zakarian, the examination
found that the indicated organization provides advisory services
on insurance. However, they failed to find this organization to
determine authenticity of the documents on the money transferred. The
organization must repay the transferred sum to the budget.

In the words of I. Zakarian, the saddest picture is with regard to the
program on the restoration of monuments, where ineffective spending
of budgetary resources, as well as facts of embezzlement were recorded.

Expenses of about 66 million drams on design work were considered
ineffective. I. Zakarian underlined that the 188 million drams
allocated under the program must be repaid to the state budget.

Gross violations were also revealed at Gugark company engaged in
restoration of historical and cultural monuments. The company must
repay 321 million drams received for the restoration of Hnevank
complex and Kobayri Monastery (10th-11th centuries) to the state
budget. I. Zakarian said that he had intended to send the case on this
company to the prosecutor’s office, but the day before he received
an official letter from the minister of culture informing him that
the ministry has already applied to Lori regional prosecutor’s office.