Heated Discussion During Meeting with Pashinyan: What Was Said

The newspaper "Zhoghovurd" reports that the Yerevan City Council is set to discuss a vote of no confidence against Mayor Hayk Marutyan today. The initiative comes from the city council’s "My Step" faction. The authorities aim to replace Marutyan with Deputy Mayor Hrachya Sargsyan, citing Marutyan's meeting with former President Robert Kocharyan and claims of his association with a "bad crowd."

Alongside the no-confidence process against Hayk Marutyan, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan recently held a meeting with the "My Step" faction at the headquarters of the "Civil Contract" party. According to information obtained by "Zhoghovurd," the closed-door meeting was quite heated. The first question raised was what mechanisms are necessary to provide Marutyan with a smooth and unobtrusive "goodbye." Following this, discussions focused on finding a replacement for Marutyan.

Pashinyan appeared inclined to entrust the mayoral position to council member Armen Kotolyan; however, other council members opposed his candidacy. Not wanting to offend or upset him, they nonetheless pointed out that Kotolyan is young and that a more experienced individual is necessary for this position. Eventually, Pashinyan conceded, and the My Step members proposed Sargsyan.

The most intense discussion revolved around the condition that anyone who dares to oppose Marutyan’s removal must resign their mandate rather than leave the faction. Members of the ruling bloc unanimously agreed that Prime Minister Pashinyan should be informed first-hand about what is happening in the mayor's office, meaning everyone must be accountable to him and report on all matters.

This agreement was reached, and today is a decisive day as political repressions against the Yerevan mayor are expected to manifest concretely. Council members are supposed to vote against Mayor Hayk Marutyan in a closed and confidential format. For more details, refer to today’s issue of the newspaper.