YEREVAN. – The public knows the opposition Armenian National Congress (ANC) more by its discourse at the squares, but it seemed we were not present following last year’s parliamentary election. But we need to present ourselves now. Capital city Yerevan Former Mayor Vahagn Khachatryan, who heads the ANC list for the forthcoming Yerevan Council election, said this during a press conference on Wednesday.

He noted that the main emphasis of the aforesaid vote is the political and the urban economy. 

“No matter what kind of elections is conducted in Armenia, we will not achieve success if the system of governance does not change. Our failures are political because the law does not function in Armenia,” he said.

Khachatryan stressed that, unlike the recent presidential election, there is a greater climate of fear ahead of the Yerevan voting.   

“We understand very well what the Yerevan Council and the office of the Mayor of Yerevan mean for the authorities, and therefore the authorities need to do everything to win in this political battle,” he maintained.  

The former Yerevan Mayor added, however, that the authorities’ triumph in this election depends on whether or not the opposition forces will collaborate.

“Considering that the people are truly tired of these authorities, under this system of governance, we have a chance to win even with four [opposition] forces,” Vahagn Khachatryan said.

He added that the opposition forces have a willingness to cooperate in the Yerevan Council election.

Photo by Arsen Sargsyan