Tatev Khachatryan, Grisha Balasanyan

Hetq has revealed that most school construction carried out in the province of Armavir from 2006 to 2014 was carried out by government officials or companies affiliated to their cronies.

On-site inspections by Hetq have also revealed that oftentimes the final product is shoddy.

Five companies monopolize school construction in Armavir.

Milaks Group Ltd. – Between 2006 and 2004, this company carried out 1.6 billion drams worth of school construction. The company is owned by Misak Ter-Poghosyan, a friend of Armavir Governor Ashot Ghahramanyan. The main shareholder is Laura Madoyan, wife of Ter-Poghosyan.

The Ter-Poghosyans also own Misak Metz Ltd., which has also built schools in the province. In the same period, this company carried out 141 million drams worth of school renovations.

BaghramyanShin CJSC – From 2006 to 2014, this company carried out 1.4 billion drams worth of construction. The owners are well connected to Governor Ghahramanyan and other top government officials.

Khachatryan Building Group – Owned by Etchmiadzin resident Ashot Khachatryan, a friend of Governor Ghahramanyan. The company signed twelve construction contracts worth 479 million drams.

Ara and Aytzemnik CJSC – Owned by MP Manvel Grigoryan, this company garnered contracts worth 601 million drams during the period. In August of this year it signed a 30 million contract with the Armavir government to renovate the No. 2 Special Needs School in Vagharshapat.

When Hetq asked Karineh Danielyan, who heads the Armavir Dept. of Urban Construction, why the same ‘connected’ firms continually receive the big construction contracts, she replied: What do you me to say? There are no tenders. Offers are made to two or three companies. The one with the lowest price gets the contract. These are companies operating in Armavir. We won’t go to Syunik and bring in forms from there. We can monitor the work of local firms.”

While Danielyan claims the Armavir government is monitoring the work of these local firms, all the schools visited by Hetq had defects and deficiencies.

Take the Loukashen village school for example with its 269 pupils. Money was allocated in 2011 for partial renovations. So far, 318 million has been spent. Work was carried out by BaghramyanShin in 2011-2013. Only one of the annexes has been renovated. Most of the building isn’t being used as a result.

Principal Armineh Petrosyan told Hetq that the gymnasium and meeting hall haven’t been renovated, nor the two-story annex. But she’s pleased with the work that has been done.

Petrosyan was recently appointed as principal and doesn’t know the details of the construction project. Instead, one of the teachers, who wished to remain anonymous, confided that before the company began its work, one of Misak Ter-Poghosyan’s companies did some partial renovations – the roof was replaced and windows painted.

It’s of note that the work carried out at the Loukashen School by one of the companies owned by a friend of Governor Ghahramanyan wasn’t included in the list provided by the Armavir government. It’s assumed that the provincial government conveniently edited the list. To date, the amounts spent to install the shoddy tin roof has been included in the 318 million allocated.

The remaining work at the school hasn’t started and Principal Petrosyan has no idea when. The Armavir government says the work has been put on hold.