“If I had taken the mandate, Gyumri could have ended up in collapse”: Avetis Arakelyan

Avetis Arakelyan, First Deputy Mayor of Gyumri, Acting Mayor, and son-in-law of arrested municipality head Vardan Ghukasyan, explained the reasons behind his decision to renounce his mandate as a National Assembly deputy.

He noted that the decision was made following discussions with both Mayor Vardan Ghukasyan and Narek Karapetyan, head of the political team’s faction, but that the final decision was his own.

“I considered that the priority is the interests of Gyumri’s residents and the city of Gyumri. At this point, I see that if I had received the mandate, the city could have faced collapse, which was unacceptable both to me and to my political team,” said Arakelyan, denying circulating claims that Gyumri’s city authorities reached a “behind-the-scenes agreement” with the authorities, as a result of which Vardan Ghukasyan’s arrest was replaced with house arrest.