ArmInfo. Armenian President Armen Sarkissian did not sign the law "On Higher Education and Science", having applied to the Constitutional Court to determine the compliance of the law with the Constitution, the press service of the head of state reported.
The law "On Higher Education and Science" and a package of related laws were sent for signature to the President on April 2. The President of the Republic discussed the legislative act with the leadership of the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia, representatives of universities, education and science, public organizations, listened to their opinions and comments.
"According to the rationale attached to the law, its main goal is to increase the efficiency of management of education and science systems. However, it should be emphasized that the law is not systemic in nature, and the provided regulations offer partial solutions to problems existing in the field of science and education.
For the adoption of such a law, first of all, it is necessary to have a clear vision, strategy and program for the development of science and education, a program indicating the direction, by which we are moving, what kind of science and education we want to develop. The law in its current form does not fully reflect the current trends in the development of science and education.
At the same time, the analysis of the law carried out by the presidential administration and expert opinions have led to the conclusion that certain provisions of the law are obviously controversial from the constitutional point of view, "the statement of the RA President's Office reads. To note, on March 24, the National Assembly adopted a package of bills providing for additions and changes to the Law "On Higher Education and Science" and related laws. According to the document, henceforth, the composition of the Council of Universities will be limited to 9 members, of which 5 will be appointed by the authorized state body, and 4 will be from the university. In fact, the rectors of universities will be appointed by the state. In early April, Yerevan State University (YSU) and the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) of Armenia issued a joint statement urging the president not to sign the document and send it for constitutional review. Thus, the statement notes that the study of the law shows that there are separate normative acts that are quite problematic from the point of view of compliance with the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia.