The prime minister, president and the National Assembly of Armenia work as a united team, with no one arranging any plot to force the population out of the country, PM Tigran Sargsyan said today at the parliament’s debate over the executive’s new program.

He made the statement in response to a comment by opposition lawmaker Aram Manukyan who asked the premier to put himself in the shoes of the country’s president and think of measures against a cabinet chief who called upon the critical mass to leave the country (Manukyan quoted a statement made previously by Sargsyan).

“As for the president-premier or premier-National Assembly relations, let me say that we are a united team. And we are aware of your viewpoints which we do not share. We are not arranging plots to force the population to leave Armenia ,” the premier said.

Manukyan, who is the secretary of the opposition Armenian National Congress (ANC) faction in parliament, was also interested in the emigration records. Responding to his remark, PM Sargsyan said that Armenia had the highest emigration rate in the 1990s.

The debate over the Government’s 2012-2017 action plan continues. The atmosphere in the National Assembly is said to be very tense, with representatives of both the parliamentary opposition and the PAP faction asking different questions to the premier.