ArmInfo. Armenia is currently facing a surge of serious social discontent that demands a proper response to prevent potential internal instability, as stated by Gagik Tsarukyan, the leader of the Prosperous Armenia party and a prominent businessman.
He highlighted several key challenges that the country's population is currently grappling with, including rising transportation costs, a fourfold increase in property taxes, a significant increase in garbage collection fees, difficulties in selling meat and animal fur in the regions, and more. Tsarukyan emphasized the importance of engaging in meaningful discussions with professional groups and the public before implementing any changes. The politician noted that in reality such discussions have either been lacking or superficial, leading to wide spread protest sentiments among citizens. In this regard, the party leader called for a halt to the current processes. He noted the need to conduct transparent calculations and thoroughly study the best practices from other countries.
Speaking of the increase in general taxation on services of notaries, lawyers and accountants, Tsarukyan recalled that in such conditions, specialists will be compelled to raise their prices. " Given that the only source of income for these service providers is ordinary citizens, this will result in services becoming unaffordable for a certain segment of the population". Reacting to the increase in turnover tax from 5 to 10%, the entrepreneur warned that this could lead to the bankruptcy of many businesses "Calculations indicate that many businesses will be forced to shut down, leaving people unemployed. Is this what we want? Unfortunately, this does not depend on our desire, this is just a business governed by laws and simple calculations," Tsarukyan continued.
According to the businessman, it is impossible to label something as "reform" if it harms all participants in the business environment.
He believes that this will not only lead to social difficulties, but also to upheavals and changes in the real estate and rental market, the consequences of which are very difficult to predict. In this regard, Tsarukyan proposed maintaining the current level of real estate tax and postponing the final stage of increase for at least 3-5 years, until the general social background in the country stabilizes and people adapt to the new conditions, reconsider their expenses and incomes. Otherwise, in his opinion, this "time crunch" will not yield any positive results.