Opposition leader in favor for setting parliamentary supervision for security structures if elected PM

Nikol Pashinyan says he is in favor for bringing the security structures of the country into the parliamentary supervision arena, however the opposition leader says that the interim government will not be able to solve all problems, therefore priorities must be defined.

Pashinyan was speaking in response to a question from Tsarukyan faction MP Shake Isayan during parliamentary debates on the election of a Prime Minister.

“Months earlier the parliament was debating the bill on state administration systems, according to which the structures under the jurisdiction of the Prime Minister are the police, the national security service, the state protection service and the control service. It received a rather strong reaction from the colleagues of your alliance also, an opinion was voiced that an attempt is being made to create a super-Prime Ministerial autocratic administration system. I would like to know your stance over this issue already as a candidate for Prime Minister. What steps will you take for security structures to be brought into the arena of parliamentary accountability?”

“Actually the super Prime Ministerial system is already created from the perspective of legislation. I find myself committed for solving this problem and making the power balanced. It is certain that the police and the national security service must change their status and become ministries, of course there are certain legislative, and perhaps constitutional difficulties for this, but they are surmountable,” Pashinyan says.

According to him, changes will not have sense if they come to power and start using the tools which they had criticized earlier. Pashinyan noted that he can’t provide many details because the issue has to be also discussed with experts and viewed from the perspective of administration efficiency and political appropriateness.

Isayan responded by saying : “For the record, can we say that if elected Prime Minister, you will launch a process that will bring security structures into the field of parliamentary accountability and make the parliamentary administration system model complete?”

Pashinyan responded by saying “yes”.

“I would like to specify one issue. Since there is a very big agenda, we will together discuss the priorities, as to with what we want to begin with, I have my viewpoint in this regard, but naturally this issue must also be decided as a result of discussions”, Pashinyan said.