Gyumri residents see no change in 27 years

/By AzerNews/

By Laman Sadigova

Armenia, the smallest country in the South Caucasus, is rife with social problems, as the incompetent government does nothing to change the tough situation.

Over the past 20 years, the Armenian authorities have remained loyal to their aggressive policy against neighboring countries, which has consequently been detrimental for Yerevan.

The foolhardy foreign policy is blended with an absolutely ill-conceived economic strategy. When the country spends a great amount of money on the military, it refuses to pay attention to the people living in poverty and crisis.

Those who have the opportunity to leave the country, find an escape in going abroad, but those who are forced to stay, suffer from horrible living conditions.

The social problems in Armenia, among others, reached their peak as the incompetent and illegitimate government would not care for its own citizens. Many people in Gyumri still live on streets and have stopped hoping for a better future a long time ago.

During the earthquake in Gyumri in 1988, the overall scale of the losses was 25,000 fatalities, while 217 buildings and 20,600 apartments with a living area of 4.423 million square meters were destroyed, resulting in property damage in excess of $10 billion.

However, even after 27 years of this tragedy, the Armenian government does nothing to improve the standard of living for those who still live in the ruins. Armenian citizens, who have become hostage to the inept government, are forced to live in unthinkable, near emergency conditions. There are about 6,500 families still living in makeshift housing.

During the past few years, the state periodically promised to renovate people’s apartments, but so far, this problem has not been solved, and the residents of dozens damaged buildings are in a hopeless situation.

Armenian Minister of Urban Development Narek Sargsyan, during his last visit to Gyumri, said that the city needs an incredible amount of money -- about $5 billion -- to repair damaged buildings, and considering the pitiful condition of Armenia’s economy, this is impossible. Thus, he suggested the use of alternative methods, without mentioning any specifically.

The question arises: who is the boss of Gyumri, and when will the country's leadership find time for this city? Most likely, they will again find a new excuse given with serious expressions on their faces.

These unacceptably poor circumstances, together with the government’s failure to solve longstanding problems, are among the main causes of emigration from the North of Armenia. Many people have fled to different countries in order to earn a living for their families. The emigration level from Gyumri continues to be high.

Does the Armenian government understand that the desperate people of Gyumri will surely not provide them support during the upcoming elections, and most likely, they will finally find a way to rise up and demand their rights? Eventually, the government’s obligation is to guarantee its citizens a decent and safe standard of living while the Armenian authorities are definitely busy doing the wrong things.