They Came to Power Through a Very Strange Deal: Marutyan

If we can gain access to all people, we will gather more than 500,000 signatures against the increase in transportation fares. This was stated today, on November 4, by the former mayor of Yerevan, Hayk Marutyan, during a signature collection organized against the fare hike on Northern Avenue.

"Because when you ask people, everyone is against this price increase. The only question is how much we can reach people, how quickly we can do it. We expect tens of thousands," he noted.

In response to the observation that the authorities might claim that those tens of thousands represent only 5-10 percent of the Yerevan population, Marutyan stated, "That cannot be the answer because they received 70,000 votes. If the number is close to that, they cannot say such a thing. Because we would also say, 'You should leave power, because only 9% of Yerevan residents elected you.' They came to power through a very strange deal with 'Public Voice.' 'Public Voice' gave its votes at the last minute, so that Avinyan could become mayor."