Armenian Government’s anti-corruption efforts not serious – opinions
The company lists the Armenian Government has drawn up in an effort to reveal corruption risks is not serious at all, an opposition member has said, considering the move a vain attempt.
Vahagn Khachatryan, an economist affiliated with the Armenian National Congress, says he doesn’t expect such an initiative to yield any result given that those proposing the measure are very well aware of the internal know-hows.
“It was clear to me from the very start that it will not yield a result; there is no need for drawing up such lists to make people taxable,” he said, considering the plan a mere show intended to blow dust in the society’s eyes.
Khachatryan said he doesn’t think it is difficult to legalize shadow businesses. “If there is really a desire to make shadow economy taxable, that will not be a big problem for the ruling authorities, as they maintain levers everywhere and know who is permitted to work in the shadow and who isn’t. All that is clear to me; likewise it is clear that the government will keep working that way,” he noted.
It comes after Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan announced last week the Government’s plan to step up efforts towards combating shadow economy. Armen Alaverdyan, a deputy minister of finance, said later that their agency had drawn up two lists, singling out the companies that have admitted the shadow in their businesses and agreed to carry out documentation procedures (to raise salaries and pay tax duties) and those which have declared themselves as clean businesses, refusing to accept the analysis by the Tax Service.
“I consider all that unserious, as the decision has to be made in the political not the economic domain. But there is no inclination for a political decision; and there can’t be any at all. If there is a political decision, it would mean that today’s political system cannot exist at all,” he said, adding that it is no use to expect a systemic solution unless the main problem is resolved.
Vardan Bostanjyan of the Prosperous Armenia faction in parliament said he doesn’t think it is possible to attain an obvious result through such kind of measures.
“This approach might be essential to all the entrepreneurs who are now in an undesirable position in terms of their tax duties. I have repeatedly emphasized that a failure to perform obligations to the state should be subject to tight sanctions,” he added.
Commenting on the expected outcomes, Vazgen Safaryan, the president of the Union of Native Commodity Producers, said he doesn’t think that listing a company as a “black” or “white” business is an effective tool to combat the shadow. He said serious tax policy analysis are necessary to reveal the problem. “The conditions themselves must make a business owner unwilling to remain in the shadow,” he said, stressing the need of revising tax policies.
Safaryan said he knows that the owners of shadow businesses are normally oligarchs maintaining levers of influence. “An ordinary businessman cannot work [in the shadow]. Who will give them permission to? [Shadow business are owned by] those who have leverages, as well as economy, and manage to practice evasions,” he added.
Asked whether he sees that political will, Safaryan referred to the prime minister’s statement. “Well, the prime minister has said he would demonstrate that will. So we now have to wait for the consistent implementation of those steps,” he noted.
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