ONE YEAR OF SERZH SARGSYAN’S PRESIDENCY AS ASSESSED BY POLITICIANS
Lena Badeyan
"Radiolur"
24.03.2009 11:20
The coalition forces are generally satisfied with the work done by
Serzh Sargsyan during the first year of his presidency, although they
notice certain shortcomings, as well.
"I would not say that everything has been succeeded, because the social
crisis hampered the progress. There were spheres where my expectations
were greater. The one who never errs, does nothing. Simply, we have
no right to err," Press Secretary of the Republican Party of Armenia
Edward Sharmazanov said.
Head of the opposition "Heritage" faction Armen Martirosyan has his
own formula for the implementation of Serzh Sargsyan’s programs.
"If Serzh Sargsyan wants to accomplish his election platforms, he must
first destroy the oligarchic-criminal, the political-economic system,
and for that purpose he should launch dialogue with the opposition
and the public, and hold extraordinary elections later. Only in this
case he can fulfill his pledges," Armen Martirosyan said.
The Armenian President’s stance during the August events in the
region is important to Heghine Bisharyan, Head of the "Orinats Yerkir"
faction. "We managed to be rather flexible and maintain our relations
with neighbor states, Georgia and Russia, and face no economic
problems," she said.
Representati ves of the coalition forces tried to be objective in
their evaluations and point to the negative things along with positive
ones. Both Heghine Bisharyan and member of the Prosperous Armenia Party
Naira Zohrabyan first recalled the tragic events in Yerevan last March.
"As for the domestic political situation, it would be untrue to say
that the internal political tension has been completely settled after
the events of March 1."
No matter who was the leader of the state on March 1, 2008, today’s
authorities are responsible for revealing the truth, Armenia
Martirosyan considers.
In general, the past year was a year of daring projects, Edward
Sharmazanov says.
These daring projects include the construction of a new nuclear power
plant, the Armenian-Iranian railway, the creation of the Pan-Armenian
Bank, the intensification of the negotiation on the settlement of
the Karabakh issue, the establishment of Armenian-Turkish relations
through "football diplomacy."
"I don’t want to throw mud at the activity of our two ex-Presidents.
Simply, it was the requirement of the time that Armenia’s foreign
policy had to become more initiating and it was one of the points in
Serzh Sargsyan’s platform," Sharmazanov said.
Naira Zohrabyan stressed that the previously planned steps sometimes
fail even in the leading countries of the world.