Parliament Speaker Cannot Patronize Anyone: Pashinyan on Alen Simonian's Connections

For the first time since the 2020 war, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan held a face-to-face press conference with journalists today, January 10. During the press conference, a reporter from Hetq raised a question regarding the phenomenon of patronage in Armenia, bringing up the relationships between Vigen Badalyan, the owner of the company Vivaro, and representatives of the authorities.

In particular, the journalist pointed out how Parliament Speaker Alen Simonian, along with MPs Hrachya Hakobyan and Eduard Aghajanyan, spent their vacation with Vigen Badalyan on the Greek island of Mykonos. Badalyan's nephew recently acquired a property in the Northern Avenue that formerly belonged to former Minister of Defense Vigen Sargsyan, which is under investigation as suspiciously obtained property. Additionally, payment terminals of the company 'Fast Shift,' owned by the Badalyans, are being installed illegally in the streets of the capital. Recently, their lending organization 'Fast Credit' has been registered as a bank.

The Hetq journalist asked the Prime Minister whether he sees any signs of patronage or corruption risks in this case, and whether legal assessment of the situation is only possible in the event of a change in power. Nikol Pashinyan stated that there are no elements of patronage in the described situation and that the Badalyans are conducting their activities in accordance with the law.