6 Million Dollars Missing, Concert to be Postponed Indefinitely: Who Will Be Held Accountable for Financial Mismanagement?

In connection with the large-scale aggression and forced displacement of Armenians by Azerbaijan, it has been decided to postpone Snoop Dogg's concert originally scheduled for September 23. The reports regarding this decision have varied; according to the official version, the initiative to postpone was from the government, while other sources indicate it was prompted by Snoop Dogg and the concert organizers.

However, it is equally noteworthy that the funds allocated from the state budget for the concert have already been spent. This was reported by the newspaper ‘Pasts’.

It should be noted that under the pretext of “communicating with contemporary art” and “making Armenia more recognizable,” the government allocated around 6 million dollars for this concert. Furthermore, it’s worth reiterating that the concert has not been cancelled but postponed, which implies that aside from the artist's fee and some minor expenses, there may be a necessity to allocate additional funds for various issues, including 'security and insurance costs', 'provision of high-level technical equipment', 'implementation of advertising activities', and other aspects.

This alone indicates a blatant waste of funds in a country that faces numerous security, social, and other challenges. Will those responsible be punished for wasting state budget resources? Considering the nature of this government, it seems unlikely.

For comparison, it is noteworthy that Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's government allocated only about 1.5 million dollars for all events dedicated to the 120th anniversary of Aram Khachaturian over the entire year, whereas nearly four times more was allocated for a single rapper's concert. One may agree, this is a telling fact.