There is a demand: Alen Simonyan must resign

The newspaper "Hayots Ashkhar" reports: "Members of the ruling party are covertly and openly demanding the resignation of the National Assembly President Alen Simonyan. This issue has also been raised before Prime Minister Pashinyan.

According to the newspaper, discussions are heating up within the ruling "Civil Contract" party these days about the necessity for Alen Simonyan to step down. According to the party members, Alen Simonyan and his associates have repeatedly found themselves at the center of scandals but have remained unpunished.

The "Hayots Ashkhar" newspaper was the first to report that the television station led by Alen Simonyan's wife, Freenews TV, has not paid the monthly fee of 1.5 million drams to Armenia's television and radio broadcasting network for months. The debt of Freenews TV amounts to 23.3 million AMD. Even after the publications, they have not settled their state debts, taking advantage of their governmental position.

Recently, Alen Simonyan's sister-in-law, Ani Gevorgyan, was arrested, having become embroiled in a corruption scandal; law enforcement describes her as being accused of assisting officials in the abuse of power.

Party members are insisting that the atmosphere of impunity surrounding Alen Simonyan must come to an end, as it damages the party's reputation. Some members have also raised the question of Alen Simonyan's resignation before Nikol Pashinyan. They explain this move by stating that last April, Alen Simonyan was unpunished after spitting on a citizen in downtown Yerevan, despite significant public dissatisfaction.

Now, with the situation escalating to corruption matters, Alen Simonyan should, at the very least, face consequences. The fact is that Pashinyan has repeatedly warned his teammates that involvement in corrupt processes will not be forgiven, yet Alen Simonyan has escaped censure. This situation has deeply frustrated party members, leading them to demand Simonyan's removal from the party.

The newspaper also reached out to the spokesperson for the NA President, Nelly Ghulian, to clarify her stance on the recent controversial events and whether she considers the law enforcement actions to be lawful. "We currently do not have any comments. If the NA President wishes to express his position, it will be done," she stated.