PRIME MINISTER REVEALS SPIRITUAL BASIS OF A DEMOCRATIC SOCIETY
Lragir.am
26-06-2007 18:37:33
By overcoming the ideological controversies we start a new life. On
June 26 the Armenian prime minister Serge Sargsyan addressed the
meeting of the National Assembly with these words, who presented the
government program to the parliament. "Life is getting better. At
the same time, we understand that we have a long way to go to bring
into being our vision of future. A future with a safe, dignified
life and possibility for self-expression for every citizen. The main
precondition for the development of our country is the spiritual
integrity of our people, the establishment of mutual confidence,
cooperation and an atmosphere of confidence," Serge Sargsyan stated.
According to him, it is a highly important pre-condition for the
effectiveness of the government. "Nerses Shnorhali stated this approach
best: Integrity in the primary, freedom in the secondary and love in
everything. In fact, it is the spiritual basis underlying a democratic
and civil society," Serge Sargsyan says.
Proceeding from the philosophical part to the government program,
Serge Sargsyan stated that in making the government program they took
into consideration the challenges of the fast-changing world and
proposed solutions which include the world experience. Along with
the challenges the world that is changing dynamically opens up new
opportunities for Armenia, the prime minister of Armenia thinks. "Our
government must use these opportunities," Serge Sargsyan says.
According to him, for Armenia, there is no alternative to an open
economic system based on competition, and the economic, financial
and cultural cooperation of countries is based on universal and
internationally recognized rules. According to the prime minister,
the force that moves the society of the 21st century is the creative
individual. "It must be our advantage in competition." According to
him, modern technologies of information and communication enable the
Armenians worldwide to make joint efforts, which may multiply the
competitive advantages of Armenia.
"Our region is at the intersection of interests of different
geopolitical forces, and controversies are inevitable. The best
strategy of sustainable and secure development is to build a
democratic society under liberal principles and in accordance with
the international experience. The government sets an ambitious
goal – to get international recognition as a country providing
the best environment for business and investments in the regional
competition. This is the track for becoming a regional center," Serge
Sargsyan says. According to him, Armenia must become competitive in
mining, chemical industry, building industry, agriculture and science.
"Moreover, we need to create competitive advantages in such spheres
as education, health, IT, tourism, financial services. High level
services in these spheres must not only be available to the citizens
of Armenia but also be attractive by their competitive advantages
in the region. Why not, also across the world. In all the enumerated
spheres the major companies need to be reshaped into companies which
bear social responsibility," the prime minister says. According to him,
the government is ready to create favorable conditions to enable both
the Armenian citizens and foreign investors to participate in the
establishment and management of these enterprises. The government
thereby sets forward the necessity to establish and promote the
system of corporative management in Armenia. In the final part of
his speech the prime minister provided figures which are reflected in
the government program as objectives. "The Armenian government will
make efforts to provide an 8-10 percent annual growth of the GDP, an
annual 10 percent growth of investments. A growth of tax collection by
0.3-0.4 percent of the GDP, poverty reduction to 12 percent. An annual
rise in pensions, beginning with a 60 percent rise from January 1,
2008," the prime minister announced.
The government declared the priorities: national security, effective
governance, development of education and science, anti-corruption
efforts.
"We must be aware that it is a disease that causes the decay of the
state. We will demand a crackdown on corruption by the law enforcement
agencies, and revealed crimes will be offered for public debate. In
this sense, the activities of the police, the office of the prosecutor
general, the tax and customs agencies must be more transparent. Thanks
to transparency strictness will be more fair," Serge Sargsyan says.
The prime minister says the government has a renewed approach towards
the implementation of these programs, and every new project will
be discussed publicly and be based on government-private sector
cooperation. "In the end, I would like to add that analysts usually
use quantitative measurements for the activities of the government,
the growth of the GDP, the GDP per capita, the average salary, the
rise in pensions, tax collections, etc.
Certainly, these are important benchmarks. However, for me
another benchmark is important which is not liable to quantitative
measurement. It is the trust of people in tomorrow and the future of
our country. Our main purpose will be to unite our society with the
slogan For You, Armenia," stated Serge Sargsyan, certainly without
a pre-election pathos.