Who Did Pashinyan Mean by ‘Serj’s Remnants’?

The newspaper “Zhoghovurd” reports: Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan made remarkable statements during his live broadcast, including the necessity of getting rid of the so-called ‘Serj’s people’. According to him, there are still individuals in the government today whom he refers to as ‘Serj’s remnants’, and the time has come to cleanse them out. In other words, Pashinyan acknowledges that even after two years since the revolution, there are still many, as he put it, ‘Serj’s remnants’ in the state governance system, which indicates that the former authorities still maintain influence within state governance and law enforcement bodies.

However, it is important to determine who exactly Pashinyan is alluding to with such characterization, as there are officials in the upper echelons of the governance system who have been high-ranking officials even before the revolution. Thus, among the current ministers and deputy ministers, there are former officials: they include Minister of Emergency Situations Felix Tsolakyan, Minister of Economy Tigran Khachatryan (who was Deputy Minister before the revolution), Minister of Environment Erik Grigoryan (assistant to the Prime Minister, Deputy Minister), Minister of Finance Atom Janjughazyan (who was a long-time Deputy Minister, Chief Treasurer), and Minister of Defense Davit Tonoyan (who was Deputy Minister, Minister of EM).

In the end, we tried to clarify whether he was referring to them or, in any case, officials one or two ranks lower. The spokesperson for the Minister of Economy, Anna Ohanyan, noted in response to our inquiry, “I have to leave such a question without comment.” On the other hand, Minister of Emergency Situations Felix Tsolakyan remarked in our conversation that he has been in the system for very long and that announcement could not concern him. At the same time, Tsolakyan agreed with the Prime Minister regarding the necessity for individuals who do not understand the revolution to leave.

Of course, this concerns the structure of the government, but there are also ‘Serj’s remnants’ in the judiciary, law enforcement agencies, and other sectors. Ultimately, what awaits the ‘Serj’s remnants’? Will they be dismissed or should they begin to write voluntary resignation letters and leave?

The newspaper “Zhoghovurd” attempted to obtain an answer to this question from the Prime Minister’s spokesperson Mane Gevorgyan, who stated: “I do not find it necessary to comment on Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's statement. He has spoken his mind, he has made his statement. Let’s see how events will unfold. I cannot say anything at this moment.” In summary, we conclude that anyone who was unemployed before the revolution was “saved.”