Armenian parliamentary opposition says protest against pension accumualtion system not pointless

Armenia’s parliamentary opposition, whose recent attempt to revise the bill aimed at introducing the pension accumulation system, was boycotted by the ruling majority, is planning a new special session to address the measure.

The members of the four opposition factions, which tried to convene a special National Assembly session last week, claim their idea to hold a new debate is not an end in itself.

The law is taking effect on January 1, 2014. The companies expected to manage accumulation funds have been already named. The founders of the first managing company are the Austrian C-QUADRAT Investment AG and the German Talanx Asset Management GmbH. The second managing company’s founder is Amundi (Societe Generale և Credit Agricol).

Speaking to Tert.am, Lyudmila Sargsyan of the opposition Armenian National Congress said their parliamentary faction does not consider the debate useless. “We do not consider it an end in itself, though it is clear they will not retreat given that both the managers have been named and significant work has been carried out with them. But the government will clearly have the opportunity to manage the fund for a certain period agreed with the companies. If the Soviet banks went bankrupt, reducing people’s deposits to zero, nobody can offer any guarantee now.”

Asked whether the move is not a kind of belated reaction by the political forces, the opposition MP said that the need matured now after the society began voicing its protest.

“People came to their senses and demanded that the [draft] law be revised or cancelled. We have done everything within our power to prevent its enforcement. But as you now, we are not a majority, so it is up to the society to rebel against the problem. And that was what happened. We do not have the right to avoid raising the people’s opinions,” she said.

Tevan Poghosyan, an opposition MP of the Heritage party, repeated his colleague’s remark, agreeing that the idea to boycott the bill is not an end in itself.

Mikael Melkumyan of the Prosperous Armenia faction said, however, the bill at issue (i.e. – its voluntary contribution component) is not the legal act adopted two years ago given that many related laws were later amended.

Melkumyan agreed that the bill, if adopted, will lead to a decrease in the monthly net profit, of many people, lowering their personal interest in work (notwithstanding the promise that the money will return to them years later).

“And secondly, there is one thing that is not treated with proper attention. Since 2013, profit tax has formed part of the social payment; the profit tax component which they have paid is closely interrelated with the [pension] accumulation system as the distributive system which will be effective along with the cumulative one for those born until 1974 will place a heavy burden on companies,” he said, considering the proposed amendments not normal.