Why the Primate of the Shirak Diocese Did Not Conduct the Memorial Service in the Presence of Nikol Pashinyan

“His presence is not desirable for me; it is unpleasant, therefore I did not conduct a memorial service in his presence,” said His Eminence Archbishop Mikayel Ajapahyan, the Primate of the Shirak Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, in an interview with Tert.am, addressing the question of why he did not perform the memorial service in the presence of Nikol Pashinyan.

“I did not want to conduct the memorial service in his presence, and that is the right of any clergyman. A clergyman is not obliged to conduct a service anywhere at someone's request,” he stated.

The Primate of the Shirak Diocese noted that the memorial service was indeed carried out. “It was conducted by a clergyman who is not uncomfortable with the presence of the Prime Minister,” he said.

Recall that Nikol Pashinyan was in Gyumri to pay tribute to the innocent victims of the 1988 Spitak earthquake.