If previously oligarchs paid bribes, now Pashinyan pays bribes from the pockets of citizens – Economist

The budget is indeed running a significant deficit, particularly in light of the new commitments undertaken by the authorities, including pension increases and universal health insurance. As a result, there is a need to compensate for these expenditures through higher revenues, economist Hrant Mikaelyan said in an interview with Aysor.am, commenting on the increase in excise taxes.

According to him, the groups affected by these price increases are among the less vulnerable segments of the population: “For example, consumers of gasoline, expensive alcoholic beverages and cigarettes are less likely to complain, which is why the government chose this path. As a rule, the poor do not consume expensive alcohol or cigarettes, and the same applies to gasoline, since they generally do not own cars. This primarily affects middle- and high-income groups. In December, Pashinyan said that pensioners did not know what they would spend an increased pension on. In other words, he was convinced there was no need to raise pensions and stated this in his usual style. Yet in April he increased pensions. This is undoubtedly linked to the electoral process and is clearly an election bribe.”

According to Mikaelyan, this did not mean that Pashinyan suddenly knew what pensioners would spend the additional money on, but rather what would follow from it – votes. “But Pashinyan is not paying that bribe himself, is he? Unlike during Serzh Sargsyan’s presidency, when oligarchs paid bribes, now Pashinyan pays them from the citizens’ pockets.”

According to the economist, there will be no economic collapse, but the state will continue to increase its debt burden and impose higher taxes: “The prices of those goods that are most dependent on logistics will increase.”