YEREVAN. - After the criticism of Head of EU Delegation to Armenia, Ambassador Piotr Świtalski regarding the electoral processes in Armenia, Deputy Speaker of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) Eduard Sharmazanov has got an impression that people don’t want the Republican Party to be the ruling one.

At a discussion during the conference on electoral developments in the country,  Piotr Świtalski slammed the electoral processes in Armenia, noting that the composition of the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) of Armenia is not reliable and thus representatives of civil society should be included it. He also stated that the halls of power are attempting to make the election law suit their own political objectives.

In an interview with Armenian News – NEWS.am, Eduard Sharmazanov opposed the EU Ambassador, recalling that the Electoral Code has been adopted by the consensus of all the parliamentary forces.

“Our partners should understand that it is the National Assembly (NA) that decides what kind of Electoral Code to have. The Electoral Code was adopted by an unprecedented consensus, for the information of Mr Świtalski.

Let me remind that five political forces signed that document. The Electoral Code is not solely that of the authorities: it was largely supported and passed by an unprecedented [number of] votes,” Sharmazanov added.

The Deputy Speaker also recalled to the EU Ambassador that the international institutions have already positively assessed the 2017 electoral processes, while Świtalski has not only now heard about the electoral system discussed.

“The issue on the formation of CEC is decided by the parties included in the National Assembly (NA), and nobody is more interested than us in the development of democracy in our country. Our partners should understand and realize the significance of their words and understand that the NA decided what kind of Electoral Code to have and what kind of commission to have in the CEC.   […] They should understand that Armenia has an NA, improved code, which some may like, while others not. Besides, the Code was passed by a great number of votes, being signed by five political forces. From this perspective, Świtalski’s assessments are odd to me,” Sharmazanov noted.

Asked whether it is not odd that the Armenian authorities receive great amounts from international institutions but are reluctant to receive criticism from the representatives of those institutions, the RPA Deputy Speaker said: “This is not a wedding, where one pays money and orders music accordingly. I think the Europeans support us, since they are confident that the democratic values should be disseminated throughout the world, Armenia being able to develop the system of democracy through its authorities, opposition and civil society. Has Mr Świtalski only now learnt about the existence of rating system in Armenia? I have the impression that people at all costs don’t want the Republican Party to be the ruling one in Armenia.”

He also stressed that earlier the same Electoral Code was approved by the EU Ambassador.