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UPCOMING ELECTIONS LEAST COMPETITIVE IN ARMENIA'S HISTORY - EXPERT
TERT.AM
21.01.13
The upcoming presidential elections will be the least competitive
ones in Armenia's history, political analyst Richard Giragosian told
the reporters on Monday.
At the same time the analyst stressed that unlike the cases of
Uzbekistan and Belarus, Armenia's incumbent president should not be
blamed for it.
"Serzh Sargsyan does not have a strong and viable contender. The
non-competitive elections reflect Armenia's political reality. The
opposition remains core and not united. This time the elections
will be fairer than previously. The most serious challenge for the
Armenia's authorities will be the low voter turnout. The absence of
real competition has resulted in the absence of public's interest,"
he said.
Referring to the election campaign, Richard Giragosian said that till
now we are witnessing the fight of individuals and not political forces
which may be testified by the low level of the political debates.
"Nevertheless, I think former PM Hrant Bagratyan and former FM Raffi
Hovhannisian will come up with new ideas and will contribute to the
raise of the level of discussion. This is their mission," he said.
Giragosian stressed that the upcoming elections will give the incumbent
president opportunity to create new political mandates.
"If Sargsyan is re-elected, an opportunity will be created to leave
a trace in Armenia's politics. The first period of Sargsyan's tenure
in office was marked with the heritage left to him by Robert Kocharyan.
Unlike that time when he was forced to bear the influence of March 1,
now he has an opportunity to go out of Kocharyan's shadow and show
the difference between the years of his presidency and Kocharyan's,"
he said.
From: A. Papazian
TERT.AM
21.01.13
The upcoming presidential elections will be the least competitive
ones in Armenia's history, political analyst Richard Giragosian told
the reporters on Monday.
At the same time the analyst stressed that unlike the cases of
Uzbekistan and Belarus, Armenia's incumbent president should not be
blamed for it.
"Serzh Sargsyan does not have a strong and viable contender. The
non-competitive elections reflect Armenia's political reality. The
opposition remains core and not united. This time the elections
will be fairer than previously. The most serious challenge for the
Armenia's authorities will be the low voter turnout. The absence of
real competition has resulted in the absence of public's interest,"
he said.
Referring to the election campaign, Richard Giragosian said that till
now we are witnessing the fight of individuals and not political forces
which may be testified by the low level of the political debates.
"Nevertheless, I think former PM Hrant Bagratyan and former FM Raffi
Hovhannisian will come up with new ideas and will contribute to the
raise of the level of discussion. This is their mission," he said.
Giragosian stressed that the upcoming elections will give the incumbent
president opportunity to create new political mandates.
"If Sargsyan is re-elected, an opportunity will be created to leave
a trace in Armenia's politics. The first period of Sargsyan's tenure
in office was marked with the heritage left to him by Robert Kocharyan.
Unlike that time when he was forced to bear the influence of March 1,
now he has an opportunity to go out of Kocharyan's shadow and show
the difference between the years of his presidency and Kocharyan's,"
he said.
From: A. Papazian