No administrative resources to be used at elections: acting PM

The political responsibility for conduction of snap parliamentary elections in Armenia lays on the government, acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at the cabinet sitting today, adding that the phase of registration of the political forces has already been completed.

“We have put an issue to conduct the most high-quality elections in the history of the third republic. I think we should change our aim and say that these will be best elections that will correspond to highets international criterea,” he said.

Pashinyan said that first of all it is necessary to exclude the usage of administrative resources.

“We know traditions from past when the education and other sectors were engaged in the political processes. But our aim is to exclude it and eradicate usage of administrative levers for orienting people,” he stressed, adding that previously “saying institutions” operated who were telling people who to vote for. “This should be excluded,” Pashinyan stressed.

The acting PM said that the mechanism of expression of the will by the voters should be clarified. The voters must have an opportunity to follow the campaign, become participants of political content and made a decision. The official outcome of the elections should be formed on the basis of people’s vote.

As to possible election frauds, Pashinyan stressed that the law enforcers are ready not only to respond to any situations but to prevent them in general.

“We will ensure free competition of all political forces during the election campaign. There will be no restrictions, all the political forces will have equal opportunities to contact and meet with voters,” he said.

“We should conduct high level elections, I have no doubt that we will do it,” Pashinyan stressed.