VIDEO: You Are Removing Us Because We Stood Against You, Marutyan

During the extraordinary meeting of the Yerevan Council, Council member and former Mayor Hayk Marutyan delivered a speech. In his remarks, Marutyan stated that an audacious decision is being discussed in the hall—to strip several opposition members of their mandates.

“You are removing us because we stood against you, demanding your resignation. That’s why you are getting rid of us, otherwise it’s all laws, absenteeism, nonsense. People elected us for five years, and you are removing me for coming or not coming for three months—who gave you that right?” he stated.

He mentioned that his absence from the meetings is a conscious decision. “Only by not attending the meetings and ensuring a lack of quorum is it possible to prevent the ruling party from making foolish and harmful decisions. Coming in and voting ‘no’ doesn’t work because the government votes are always slightly outnumbered, but they are not more numerous; they are a minority. Boycotting has remained our only method of political struggle.

“Citizens approach me, saying, ‘What kind of situation is this?’ I tell them, ‘Dear people, what can I do? We are not the government. Please write a letter, send an email to the city hall, and put your name as Sis, so they can see,’” Marutyan said.

He declared that the process of removing him from the council has a specific purpose—to deprive the opposition of another platform for struggle. It is noteworthy that today’s meeting discusses the issue of stripping mandates from five opposition members of the council. For more details, watch the video.