YEREVAN. – In an interview with 2rd.am, Armenian second President Robert Kocharyan commented on PM Tigran Sargsyan’s statement, at a recent press conference, that the “construction balloon” as exploded in Armenia.

Kocharyan specifically said the following in the interview:

“The PM’s response to the journalist’s question about the causes of the continuing decline in the volume of construction in the republic caught my attention, since the PM’s explanation had nothing in common with reality. I will try to answer that question myself.

“Why is the volume of construction steadily declining for five consecutive years? 

“1) The mass exodus of the people from Armenia. The potential buyers of new apartments are leaving [thereby] reducing the demand in the real estate market. The drop in the real estate demand and price has undermined the investment charm of the construction industry.

“2) The significant deterioration of the mortgage terms. Few intelligent people would dare to use such a ‘mortgage.’ And the banks are not to be blamed in this. Also add the substantial growth in the poor population to all this.

“3) The mood of our citizenry. Apathy, the sense of hopelessness, [and] the lack of faith in the country’s prospect are becoming a stable factor in the conduct and motivation of the people. A person, who plans to leave, never acquires real estate in the country, or the city, which he wants to leave. The same also applies to launching a new business.     

“And [all] this is not the fault of the previous government. The [economic] crisis likewise has no connection for a long time. So, it is impossible to evade accountability here. If the PM does not understand this, he has experienced a degradation of rationality. If he is lying and maneuvering while understanding [this], this is an ethical degradation. In any case, a low-worth PM is an impermissible luxury for the country.”