Opposition Stays Firm Due to Government Behavior: Ghazinyan

Arthur Ghazinyan, a member of the "Armenia" parliamentary faction, has been unsuccessful for the fifth time in being elected as the deputy chairman of the Defense and Security Committee. If the opposition candidate is not elected twice more in the upcoming month, the ruling Civil Contract party will propose a legislative initiative to ask the opposition to put forward a new candidate.

In a conversation with reporters, Ghazinyan stated that the government cannot impose its will on the opposition. "The government has no moral right to dictate the behavior of the opposition, nor to say 'we do not like this candidate' or 'we accept this candidate'. They are obliged to respect the opposition's decision and cast their votes accordingly. To refuse means to give that position over to the government. Therefore, the opposition cannot submit to Andranik Kocharyan's demands and change the candidate, thus handing over the vice-presidential status to the government," he said.

Ghazinyan elaborated that it will be up to the faction to decide whether to propose his candidacy again. When asked about why his candidacy has not been accepted, he mentioned that he had put forward two critically important agendas in the last two sessions related to the war, specifically the question of whether the war could have been stopped on October 7, and therefore, those responsible must be held accountable.

“Mr. Kocharyan must qualify the subject whose inaction or actions have resulted in the deaths of 3,600 people, and also assess how to describe someone who comes to the graves of these fallen men and mocks them. He enjoys making such qualifications about his leader,” Ghazinyan asserted.

The MP indicated that a commission of inquiry should not be led by Andranik Kocharyan. He does not consider holding the position of vice-chairman to be principled, and even believes it is not a significant position. "If becoming the deputy chairman of the commission were principled, I would have solved that issue some other way. The government's behavior has forced the opposition to remain firm in their positions. They bear political responsibility for this; the commission is incapacitated, it is in a dysfunctional state," Ghazinyan added.

He also pointed out that his proposal today is of interest to every Armenian, as there are unanswered questions. According to him, there should be a more competent body than this commission to find those answers, which should be the Judiciary and Investigative bodies that must initiate criminal cases. That proposal was also sidelined in the commission.

“Mr. Kocharyan himself would have had to come to that subcommittee, present himself, provide information, and answer smart questions because he was the highest representative of the military-political leadership in Armenia at that time, being the chairman of the Defense and Security Committee of the 7th convocation. He should also be investigated,” Ghazinyan stated. He concluded that if the government decides to create a commission of inquiry, it cannot be led by that individual.