Zohrabian: Government shows undisguised disrespect for parliament

“The government shows undisguised disrespect for the parliament by designating bills as urgent and submitting them to the parliament on Friday evening or Monday morning,” the secretary of Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) faction Naira Zohrabian told reporters.

Let us remind you that a special session of the Armenian parliament was held today. Deputies were to discuss and vote on a number of bills designated as urgent by the government.

BHK faction did not participate in the vote on some bills, saying that the government submitted bills drafted in a hurry, which Ms. Zohrabian said is a disrespectful attitude towards the National Assembly.

“If they have such a high IQ and some of the qualities of Napoleon I and need, say, an hour to become acquainted with a bill received at 11 am and then to discuss it and express their position, I propose to include them in the Guinness Book of Records as latter-day Napoleons. Such obsequiousness to the government is inadmissible,” Naira Zohrabian noted.

Labor and Social Affairs Minister Artyom Asatrian who presented several bills in the parliament didn’t share Ms. Zohrabian’s opinion. He told reporters that they never submit bills drafted in a hurry. “In some cases, there is no time to discuss a bill in a parliamentary committee,” he said.