An old Soviet joke was telling that in the 80s when the train swiftly moving to communism stopped the Soviet government ordered the people to continue shaking and rattle like they were still in the train. By doing that they were creating an impression that the train is still rushing to bright future. Our government has the same behavior. Now even the official statistics state the reduction of economy. But most of the population doesn’t read statistics. Instead the ears of the majority are available to the propaganda machine. On February 24 the machine released a statement that a working consultation was held in the city council of Yerevan on the community activities of Yerevan and their social-economic situation. It was aimed at planning development programs. The whole world is in crisis but we are planning development schemes. In 2009 the capital city is instructed to develop. The official information also from time to time tells how this development is going to proceed. For example, the release says that during the consultation the garbage collection issue of Yerevan was discussed. “The minister of economy Nerses Yeritsyan presented the garbage collection plan of Yerevan by mentioning that by the support of the World Bank the German Fikhtner company continues its surveys in Yerevan, aimed at sanitation, garbage collection and nature protection issue.” As you see this bold publication includes only a part of the statement. It’s not understandable how the World Bank supports Fikhtner to provide consultative services to Yerevan municipality. Whose money is used? How much does this consultation cost? Why does our local government look for garbage collection consultation? Everybody knows that the local authorities are not able to organize garbage collection. It is not understandable why they cancelled the consultation of 2007-2008 consultation offered by a Japanese firm. And now Yerevan is looking for consultation again. According to the data of the WB that service is an expensive luxury. The German company Fikhter will receive 500 thousand USD for its consultation services. And so the global crisis makes all the states to revise their economic and financial policies and cut down their expenditures. But our authorities are not willing to cut their expenses even for inexpedient projects. People are spending 500 thousand USD to only receive consultation on garbage collection. It is not important at all how many German-made garbage trucks and equipment would be able to buy with that much money for the city. What’s important is to take the same route again and again. We have been searching financial means to organize garbage collection since the 90s. Specialists have been visiting from different countries to Armenia. They arrive in Armenia, give us good pieces of advice and leave. Of course they leave after they receive their wages. They have several times presented a project of building a garbage-refining plant. It was supposed to be a very large factory so we would be able to import the garbage of neighboring states and refine it. The greens made noise in vain. They were seriously scared of becoming the garbage center of the region. The construction of a garbage refinery costs approximately 1.5-10 million Euros depending on size of the factory and technological capacities. In this sector there are no foreign investments because part of the garbage zone is privatized and the owners know that sooner or later it is going to turn into serious business. Many serious foreign factories have submitted very good business projects for garbage refinery. Surveys and analyses were made. But they all refused their projects because of the attitude of our government, which doesn’t tend to support anything if their “share” is not there. Nevertheless, it is impossible to keep our government far from the garbage theme. Instead of buying garbage trucks, increasing the salaries of the ones, who work in this sector or instead of creating an opportunity of building a garbage refinery plant they have been working about garbage collection and have spend fortunes on consultations. The attitude of Armenians to garbage collection is slightly different. The Armenian parent persuades his/her child to study well otherwise the child may become a cleaner when grown up. And perhaps our ministers and the mayor haven’t studied well because they are now grown up and are wasting their time on garbage collection and listening to expensive advice. Meanwhile streets and blocks are covered in garbage stacks. Who would ever think that the German translation of the “Avlem Tapem” (broom and clean) song would cost 500 thousand USD.
