Businessman Hrant Vardanyan: “I would always endorse Serzh Sargsyan”

05/12/2007 Lilit SEYRANYAN

– Mr. Vardanyan, in all of the previous elections you have endorsed the ARF. Why have you decided to support Serzh Sargsyan this time?

– I am going to vote for Sargsyan and I have always been a supporter of the ARF and will remain one. There is no Armenian party older than 117 years.

– Then why don’t you endorse the candidate of the 117-year-old party?

– I do.

– You are going to endorse Serzh Sargsyan’s candidature.

-What does it have to do with that? If the ARF had Serzh Sargsyan as a candidate I would still endorse him. What’s the difference? What is unclear for you?

– The fact that ARF has its own candidate.

– Why is it so important? You or I could be the ARF candidate but we would be weak. If the ARF doesn’t have Serzh Sargsyan does it mean that the RPA is guilty?

– So you think that the strongest candidate is Sargsyan.

– At present he is the strongest.

– Don’t you see a strong candidate in the opposition? For example, what can you say about Levon Ter-Petrosyan?

– I wasn’t in Armenia during Ter-Petrosyan’s presidency. He is a very good specialist of geopolitics and history but I don’t accept his viewpoints in the economic sector and have never accepted.

– Do you agree that the current businessmen are the victims of the government?

– I think if the businessman is honest to the budget he cannot become anyone’s victim, neither the incumbent government nor the former government and nor the future government.

– The inspections in MP Khachatur Sukiasyan’s enterprises are connected with political motives. What is your assessment about this?

– What does this mean? These are the results of the inspections. We collaborate with Khachatur Sukiasyan in the cigarette sector and can say and even sign that Sukiasyan in the cigarette sector is very honest and no government can blame him of anything. And I think they will never blame him.

– If he is honest in one sector why would he be dishonest in the other one?

– You should ask him this question. Why would I know? I am not aware of his activity in other sectors.

– Have you met him recently?

– I always meet him.

– Have you met or called him lately?

– No he hasn’t applied to me. We called each other discussing business matters. It was like that in past as well. We mostly speak on the phone. We didn’t discuss any political issues.