ArmInfo.Currently, the Committee on Economic Affairs does not have a draft law on the nationalization of the "Electric Networks of Armenia", as the government has not yet submitted this bill to the parliament. Sergey Bagratyan, MP from the "Civil Contract" faction, stated this in a conversation with journalists on June 19.
He clarified that discussions are held in the initial stage, and only then can the draft be considered ready for submission to parliament for consideration. Speaking about the legislative initiatives necessary for the nationalization of the electric networks, Bagratyan brought up the discussion held in parliament two months ago regarding the activities of the "Electric Networks of Armenia", where several deficiencies were identified. The MP mentioned the possibility that the company's may not have been used directly for the enterprise in question and but for other purposes. However, he stressed that these are just assumptions that need to be verified. "The government has the authority to make decisions regarding any enterprise based on inspections," Bagratyan added.
Touching upon the state's readiness to purchase "Electric Networks of Armenia" and the availability of the necessary funds for this, the MP pointed out the need to hold negotiations with the company's owner to determine the amount of the transaction. "We must also understand that sometimes the real cost can be deceptive, as the enterprise may have significant debts, ultimately leading to the need to deduct these debts from the total cost," the MP explained.
According to him, purchasing "Electric Networks of Armenia" is one option for resolving the issue. He also suggested that the inspections he mentioned earlier may have already taken place, and it seems that it was as a result of these inspections, facts emerged that gave the Prime Minister of Armenia grounds for such statements. When discussing how these audits could have been carried out, he noted that there are open sources containing all the data on the costs, loans received and taxes paid by the Electric Networks of Armenia. Therefore, as Bagratyan noted, all of this is happening within the framework of the audit.
The MP also stated that it is useless to fight against the authorities elected by the people, emphasizing that there is little time left before the by-elections. He highlighted that the current decisions being made by the government are evidence that they are ready to do whatever it takes to improve the situation in the country.
"People understand all this, they see our projects. It is important to understand that we must solve our internal political problems ourselves, no one from outside should interfere in them," Bagratyan stated. He essentially failed to explain why the prime minister says that the nationalization of the electric networks is inevitable, while nothing is clear yet. The deputy tried to present all of this as a solution to the issues that citizens are raising, as well as a solution to strategically important matters that, according to him, "should be accepted positively by society and find their own solutions."
