Armenian government approves next silly idea to stop corruption
By Rashid Shirinov
The widespread corruption in Armenia is gaining momentum, and now the government of the country has come up with another silly idea.
In addition to the Anti-Corruption Council, Armenia is going to create the second body, now not for fight against corruption but for its prevention.
The Armenian government has proposed to establish another almost identical body to combat the corruption in the country. The draft law "On body for prevention of corruption" was approved at the government meeting on May 25, the Armenian media report.
The Armenian media reported that the new body on prevention of corruption will monitor ethics of the country’s officials, conflicts of interest and other requirements for the Armenian officials.
These requirements will apply not only to high-ranking officials, but also to employees in sectors with high potential risks of corruption: public procurement, public prosecution and investigative bodies.
So far, the Anti-Corruption Council of Armenia failed to fight against this problem, which is destroying the country and its statehood.
The fact of destructive corruption in Armenia was repeatedly pointed out by many foreign representatives in the country. In particular, the U.S. Ambassador Richard Mills has recently harshly demanded from the Armenian authorities to stop this outrage. The diplomat noted that if Armenia does not manage to solve the problem of corruption, it will affect the relations between the two countries in specific areas – for example, in investments.
It is obvious that no matter how many state bodies against corruption Armenia creates, nothing will change while its current president Serzh Sargsyan rules the country. Instead of implementing a serious fight against the problem, the authorities make unrealistic promises for poor Armenian population, just like Sargsyan has recently made at the first meeting of the newly elected Parliament.
The 2015 report of the Transparency International Anti-corruption Center showed that Armenia is one of the most corrupt country of the world.
Despite the European Union Delegation to Yerevan contributing €1.5 million towards two anti-corruption projects in the 2011-2014 period, the doleful situation has shown no signs of change. Moreover, the Armenian authorities do not support the fight but impede it, as the government is itself mired in corruption.
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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov
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