I Do Not Accept the Charges Against Me: Vazgen Harutyunyan on the Scandal Surrounding Him

Considering the great interest in the information spread in the media regarding the public criminal prosecution initiated against me, I find it necessary to state that I do not accept the charges brought against me, and I consider them at least unfounded. To avoid my words ringing hollow, I will briefly present the facts.

This was written on his Facebook page by Vazgen Harutyunyan, the head of the transport department of Yerevan Municipality.

"The question concerns the competition for the placement of traffic signs in the city of Yerevan in 2023, which was won by the Impex LLC company. Its contract was unilaterally terminated due to the failure to present the required bank guarantee set by the competition invitation, meaning in accordance with the direct requirements of the law. The transport department of Yerevan Municipality, represented by me, initiated a new bidding process for the procurement of traffic signs for 2023 in order not to fail the installation process and to ensure traffic safety in Yerevan, submitting the corresponding procurement request.

About a week after submitting the procurement request, I received a court act based on the claim of Impex LLC to apply for security measures, which prohibited the Yerevan Municipality from initiating the new procurement process for traffic signs until a final court decision is made on the main claim. Moreover, it is specifically mentioned in the same court act that the legislation prohibits any court act that would suspend an already initiated procurement process, which is exactly why the initiation was prohibited.

Refraining from commenting on the content of the court act, regarding the consequences of the impossibility of installing traffic signs in Yerevan for a long period, I note that I am, in essence, being accused of failing to carry out the court act regarding the initiation of the procurement process after receiving the act several days after submitting the procurement request. This means I was supposed to know about such an act before receiving it and not to initiate the process.

In essence, this is the entire accusation and reality.

I would like to add that during my questioning as a witness in this case, beyond the fact of not presenting a bank guarantee, I have provided information on Impex LLC concerning the submission of allegedly false data, regarding which there has been, inexplicably, no information about any proceedings up to today," Harutyunyan wrote.