Unwanted Mayors to be Removed: New Unconstitutional Bill

In Armenia, the powers of several mayors and council members have expired, and new elections have not been held due to emergency and martial law conditions. The government has introduced yet another unconstitutional initiative by putting forth a bill that proposes to extend the powers of council members whose terms have expired until the formation of a newly elected council.

However, the same cannot be said for mayors. On the contrary, the government is appointing temporary acting mayors, which is discriminatory towards elected mayors. Sources within the authorities candidly reveal that they were unable to remove unwanted mayors by launching criminal cases against them and are now attempting to utilize the conditions of martial and emergency law. Those mayors whose terms are set to expire will be replaced by candidates favored by the government, who will later solidify their positions and be elected to that office.