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SERGE SARGSYAN SAYS HE'S NO ADVENTURER
Lrgair.am
13-09-2007 11:42:52
Prime Minister Serge Sargsyan stated September 12 at the parliament
that Armenia's budget 2008 which will be soon presented to the National
Assembly will total about 2.5 billion dollars. This statement by the
prime minister was the main topic of the following briefing because
the reporters tried to find out how such a big budget will be accrued.
Mr. Prime Minister, you said the budget of 2008 will total 2.5 billion
dollars. How will the government boost the budget to that level?
Traditionally, in Armenia the bulk of all the budgets is the national
revenues. Return on tax and customs fees. You know we have no gas
and oil. On the expense of boosted revenues, reduction of black
economy, improvement of the tax policy, a more rigid tax policy,
and not through increasing the tax load.
Mr. Prime Minister, you mentioned a 2.5 billion dollar sum, in other
words, all through those years we could have raise tax collections
and boosted the budget. Isn't this a pre-election budget?
I didn't say so, and only adventurers may endanger the normal
development of our country out of election ambitions. I have
never been an adventurer, even though an adventurer has a positive
connotation. No, I don't mean we could but we failed to collect taxes.
What I said means the contrary. It means that we collected so much
taxes in the past years that if we collect a little more, we will
have this much. This is what my words mean.
Mr. Sargsyan, almost all the political forces, NGOs are speaking about
your participation in the presidential election but you haven't stated
officially about your nomination, and they also say as an alternative
if Levon Ter-Petrosyan is nominated, you and the first president will
be the main opponents? What is your attitude, and what is your vision?
What shall I say? My attitude toward these forecasts is normal,
I may be nominated, or the Republican Party may nominate me, but I
think it's early to speak about it. We are not going to change our
strategy depending on the abundance or scarcity of candidates. We
acted so in the parliamentary election and we will be acting so in the
presidential election. We have a major goal. Our goal is to have at
least a similar opinion of people and the international organizations
on the presidential election as on the parliamentary election. This is
our main goal. For the time being, we see no other problem. Afterwards
we may speak about other problems.
Mr. Prime Minister, what are your thoughts about the settlement of
former inmates in Javakheti by Georgia, which may later serve as a
place of exile and cause the Armenian population to leave Javakheti?
The members of parliament raised this issue yesterday. They called
the government to take moves. What are your thoughts?
You see, I cannot imagine what our reaction would be if our neighboring
country told us that we are solving one problem or another in Syunik or
elsewhere. I think such interference with Georgia's internal affairs,
regarding such issues, is inappropriate. I think the government of
the Republic of Armenia, we all should make efforts to improve the
quality of life, security, of our compatriots in Javakheti, to have
good schools there, to have good hospitals there like in Armenia. But
we cannot tell them to do one thing or another. I think it is too much.
Lrgair.am
13-09-2007 11:42:52
Prime Minister Serge Sargsyan stated September 12 at the parliament
that Armenia's budget 2008 which will be soon presented to the National
Assembly will total about 2.5 billion dollars. This statement by the
prime minister was the main topic of the following briefing because
the reporters tried to find out how such a big budget will be accrued.
Mr. Prime Minister, you said the budget of 2008 will total 2.5 billion
dollars. How will the government boost the budget to that level?
Traditionally, in Armenia the bulk of all the budgets is the national
revenues. Return on tax and customs fees. You know we have no gas
and oil. On the expense of boosted revenues, reduction of black
economy, improvement of the tax policy, a more rigid tax policy,
and not through increasing the tax load.
Mr. Prime Minister, you mentioned a 2.5 billion dollar sum, in other
words, all through those years we could have raise tax collections
and boosted the budget. Isn't this a pre-election budget?
I didn't say so, and only adventurers may endanger the normal
development of our country out of election ambitions. I have
never been an adventurer, even though an adventurer has a positive
connotation. No, I don't mean we could but we failed to collect taxes.
What I said means the contrary. It means that we collected so much
taxes in the past years that if we collect a little more, we will
have this much. This is what my words mean.
Mr. Sargsyan, almost all the political forces, NGOs are speaking about
your participation in the presidential election but you haven't stated
officially about your nomination, and they also say as an alternative
if Levon Ter-Petrosyan is nominated, you and the first president will
be the main opponents? What is your attitude, and what is your vision?
What shall I say? My attitude toward these forecasts is normal,
I may be nominated, or the Republican Party may nominate me, but I
think it's early to speak about it. We are not going to change our
strategy depending on the abundance or scarcity of candidates. We
acted so in the parliamentary election and we will be acting so in the
presidential election. We have a major goal. Our goal is to have at
least a similar opinion of people and the international organizations
on the presidential election as on the parliamentary election. This is
our main goal. For the time being, we see no other problem. Afterwards
we may speak about other problems.
Mr. Prime Minister, what are your thoughts about the settlement of
former inmates in Javakheti by Georgia, which may later serve as a
place of exile and cause the Armenian population to leave Javakheti?
The members of parliament raised this issue yesterday. They called
the government to take moves. What are your thoughts?
You see, I cannot imagine what our reaction would be if our neighboring
country told us that we are solving one problem or another in Syunik or
elsewhere. I think such interference with Georgia's internal affairs,
regarding such issues, is inappropriate. I think the government of
the Republic of Armenia, we all should make efforts to improve the
quality of life, security, of our compatriots in Javakheti, to have
good schools there, to have good hospitals there like in Armenia. But
we cannot tell them to do one thing or another. I think it is too much.