New Scandal: The Court Invalidates Multiple Appointments by the Mayor

«Ժողովուրդ» newspaper reports that the appointments made by Yerevan Mayor Hayk Marutyan for several positions have been deemed invalid by the court. In 2019, the Yerevan Municipality announced competitions for the positions of Head of the External Design and Advertising Department, Head of the Architecture and Urban Development Department, Head of the Urban Development and Land Control Department, and Deputy Head of the Architecture and Urban Development Department.

Arsen Avetisyan also participated in the competitions for the aforementioned positions. However, he was not recognized as a winner in any of the competitions and subsequently filed a lawsuit. Judge Grigor Arakelyan heard all parties involved and, one year later, on March 2, 2020, issued a ruling granting the claim, invalidating the competitions held for those positions and the mayor's orders.

This means that individuals who have already been in office for a year were appointed as a result of a non-objective competition. It appears that there is a 'blat' at the Yerevan Municipality, allowing appointments to be made at will, and they have even appealed the court's ruling to the Republic of Armenia Court of Appeals, attempting to buy time.

For more details, refer to today's edition of the newspaper.