Responding to opposition press reports that the Heritage Party has become a "satellite" appendage of the ruling coalition, HP Deputy Stypoa Safaryan stated that, "Heritage has never viewed itself as neither the number one party in Armenia nor the last. Since we are not considered with ranking in the political arena, we will not speculate as to which party stands where." Deputy Safaryan stated that the impetus to become dominant on the political landscape was normal. "Any political force enters politics to assume the reins of government and implement its program and struggles for dominance," he said. When asked by reporters why then didn't the Heritage Party run a slate for the recent municipal elections, Mr. Safaryan responded that in 207 the party became the representative for that segment of the voting public that had no representation in the parliament. "We have served the interest of a much wider public than our constituency." The Heritage Party parliamentary faction leader Armen Martirosyan, commenting on the recent Millennium Challenge Corporation report criticizing Armenia for democratic shortcomings, said, "The evaluation was a mild one because we have a rosier picture of reality." Mr. Martirosyan stated that as a result of the continued criminal activities of the Armenian government, the country has been deprived of valuable financial assistance during the current global crisis.