Opposition MP says political team 'considers alternative candidate' for prime minister

The opposition bloc Yelk is considering plans to nominate its alternative candidate for the prime minister of Armenia.

Speaking to Tert.am, a member of the political faction, Edmon Marukyan, said they came up with the idea with a mind to promote drastic reforms in the government, seeing absolutely no prospects for fundamental changes after the 2018 presidential election (which will also mark the period of transition to a parliamentary government).

Noting that the privilege to name a prime minister pertains exclusively to the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), Marukyan said they will be opposed to any candidate proposed by the ruling political party.

In his words, the political prospects remain very dim for now, with no specific names being sketched on the political arena.

“The approach in our political system is narrowly personalized, as we do not clearly know which specific person will be named a prime minister to later take over also for the president. In just a couple of months, this parliament is electing a speaker, but no candidate’s name is so far known - either officially or non-officially. The country is in a cyclone of uncertainty, which isn’t really good for its future development,” he said, blaming the Republican, as well as its coalition partner, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaksutyun (ARF-D) for the existing situation.