Monday, October 24 2022 17:59

ArmInfo. During the year, the number of cases conducted by the investigators of the Anti-Corruption  Committee has more than tripled. This was stated by the head of the  department Sasun Khachatryan on October 24 at the meeting dedicated  to the Day of the employee of the Anti-Corruption Committee and the  first anniversary of the establishment of the body.

In particular, according to Khachatryan, from October 23, 2021 to the  present day, the Anti-Corruption Committee has been investigating  1,042 criminal cases. Meanwhile, during the previous year, the RA  Special Investigation Service (the predecessor of the Committee - ed.  note) considered 565 criminal cases.  Currently, 366 criminal  proceedings are being investigated, while by the time the deprtment  started its activities, 114 criminal cases were being considered.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, in turn, noted that the fight against  corruption is one of the most important obligations of the current  government to society. Thus, according to him, the work in this  direction is already bearing fruit - in various international  reports, the significant progress of the Republic of Armenia is  noted.

"Now let's return to the Republic of Armenia from international  platforms and ask ourselves if we are satisfied with the results and  effectiveness of the anti-corruption policy pursued in Armenia. By  and large, we cannot say that we are dissatisfied, but, on the other  hand, we cannot say that we are satisfied. This is not because no  work done and no results, but, first of all, because in terms of  combating corruption, the expectations of society, and they can be  objective and exaggerated, we have not met the expectations of the  public, and we must accept and recognize this," he said.

At the same time, as Pashinyan noted, the issue is not the lack of  political will, but the need to carry out institutional reforms. <If  until today we have referred to all sorts of objective reasons,  justified why the fight against corruption in Armenia is not deep  enough and why there is no proper compensation for the damage caused  by corruption in Armenia, then today, despite the fact that the  Anti-Corruption Committee is not yet fully staffed, there are still  difficulties in work, but we have already formed all the  institutional foundations>, the prime minister said.

Nikol Pashinyan also touched upon the increase in wages for  investigators, judges, prosecutors, and policemen. "In fact, this is  done not for those people who receive a salary, but for the people,  society, because these people must protect the interests of the  people," the head of the Armenian government stressed.