I Have Instructed to Start a Service Investigation: Vahe Ghazaryan on Violations in the Ministry of Internal Affairs Procurement Sector

“During the first 9 months of 2023, 65 protocols were submitted to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and for their elimination, 22 recommendations were made,” said Karen Karapetyan, a member of the Audit Chamber, at the joint session of the Parliamentary Committees on Financial-Budgetary Affairs and Defense and Security.

He presented the current conclusion of the Audit Chamber regarding the “Outcomes of the State Budget Execution Audit for the Ministry of Internal Affairs in 2023.” Karapetyan noted that 12 out of the recommendations have been fully accepted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), 4 have not been accepted, and information has not yet been provided regarding 6 others.

Listing the identified violations, Karapetyan highlighted the contract for the acquisition of vehicles for the Patrol Service, which was signed with “ChekhAuto” LLC for 65 Skoda sedans. A total of 1 billion 171 million drams was spent from the state budget, and the MIA announced a procurement competition for 4-door vehicles, while the company supplied 5-door vehicles that were 17 mm shorter than ordered, and instead of the required 17-inch wheels, 16-inch wheels were provided.

The Chief Secretary of the MIA Ara Fidanian stated that in the bid submitted by “ChekhAuto” LLC, the vehicle was represented as a 4-door model, and in exchange for supplying smaller tire sizes, additional winter tires were provided.

Atom Janjughazyan pointed out that the issue is not about the tire sizes, but about the violations of public procurement procedures.

Minister of Internal Affairs Vahe Ghazaryan added, “I have instructed the internal security and anti-corruption department to start a service investigation, and based on the results, if it is determined that there is a criminal composition, it will be sent for preliminary investigation; if there is a disciplinary violation, then we will impose disciplinary penalties.”