Serzh Sargsyan: If I were not absolutely sure of functionality of constitutional reform, I would not have initiated amendments

 If the constitutional amendments in Armenia are adopted, the parties will be enlarged and their role in the political field will be enhanced, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said at a press conference.     

"If I were not absolutely sure of the functionality of the constitutional reforms, I would not have initiated the amendments. Unfortunately, the semi-presidential form of government, which divides the President's powers between the Parliament and the Government, creates some difficulties. It is a crime to see those threats and to do nothing," he said.       

The president hopes that the referendum will be held and everything will calm down. 

When asked what the opponents of the constitutional reforms seek, he replied that he classifies those people into several groups. The first group comprises people who are sure that they are unable to form a political force, obtain a big percentage of votes, receive seats in the Parliament and form a government.    

"But these people think that they are charismatic (and they are - in most cases), they see that their success lies through the presidential elections. Those people are totally "against" the reforms and they had expressed their opinion before the document was publicized. The content of the document does not matter to them. The only thing they want is a lack of parliamentary regime," said Sargsyan.     

The second group consists of opponents of any - good or bad - proposals of the authorities. "They simply think that if the authorities propose something, it is a nasty trick. The representatives of the third group are displeased with some events and they express their discontent by saying 'no'", said Sargsyan.    
To note, the constitutional referendum is scheduled for Dec 6. The opponents of the reforms think the reforms help the incumbent authorities to retain grip on power.