By Karineh Danielyan

While politics might not be an inseparable part of life for Armenians living in the United States as it is for Armenians living in Armenia, those who have migrated to the States from the homeland continue to follow political developments back home very closely.

Parallel to the daily discussions in Armenia around the topic of who will be the country’s next prime minister, Armenians in Glendale also have their opinions and comments on the matter.

In an attempt to gauge what type of prime minister they’d want to see in Yerevan, Hetq randomly spoke to a number of Glendale Armenians.

Nadia Petrosyan (teacher) – The prime minister must work independently and make decisions on his own. It must be someone who places the interests of the nation and the people above his own personal interests.

If the Republican Party again nominates its own candidate nothing will change. It will like a move on the chessboard to throw dust in the eyes of the opposition and to calm the situation down a bit.

Generally, the actions of the prime minister signify nothing if the parliament majority only is engaged in pushing buttons. And it appears that the Republicans are not inclined to hand over the government to anyone else, since their main aim is to guarantee their material profits. Thus, most likely, one of the regime’s cohorts will be appointed the next prime minister.

The government in Armenia today operates on the principles of a junta. What we need instead is a government dedicated to national principles. Thus, this isn’t an opportunity for change but rather the next chess move.

Aleks Piroumyan (programmer) – I believe that for change to take place the president must change as well as the ruling party. The prime minister is not a factor; he’s like a marionette figure. The ideas of the former prime minister are spent. There’s a need for new fables to feed the people with.

Grandma Amalya (88 y.o.) – We need a strict person to stop the stealing of the money flowing into the country. He should stand up to America and Russia and not listen to any of them. They should feel that there’s a real country in front of them.

Yervand Grigoryan (psychologist) – I don’t care who the prime minister is, they won’t be able to effect change in today’s Armenia. The reason for being appointed prime minister isn’t pushing through reforms but to get rich; to resolve personal and conjectural issues.

The difficulties of being selected prime minister in Armenian are linked to our psychological make-up. Today, our level of development doesn’t allow us to think on a state level and to see a bit beyond personal interests.

There’s an old Soviet joke. When the authorities would tell the people that changes are coming and that new officials would replace the current ones, the people would respond, ‘there’s no need to replace the tramway driver but rather the tramway tracks.’ The point is the tramway will run on the same tracks regardless of who is driving.

Michael Torosyan (insurance company employee) – Let it be a smart person with a high IQ. This is very important. A person with less education and smarts cannot intelligently manage the country and will easily fall prey to various influences.

I propose that all candidates be tested for their intelligence level and also pass a psych test to reveal any hidden pathological characteristics.

In the U.S. and Europe, such tests are given to applicants at major corporations. We, on the other hand, blindly select a prime minister and president on whom the situation of the people remains dependent for quite a long period. We have to change our approach.

Diana Mkrtchyan (kindergarten instructor) – He must be strong like an oak, his own man, who isn’t even swayed by what the president might say. He must have managerial capabilities and a sharp mind for interacting with the outside world. He must be flexible in dealing with the West and East.

The prime minister must have a balanced and predictable character with high morals who won’t steal millions of dollars.

Zohrap Shahnakyan (physician) – I would like to see a dedicated, sincere, hard-working and professional as the next prime minister; someone who can manage the country’s economy and grow it to a respectable level.

The country’s welfare is linked to the country’s economy. The future of the old and young, the army, education, all of it is dependent on the level of economic development.