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On October 4, the parliament continued the work of the four-day sittings by voting passed the legislative initiatives debated on the previous day.

Upon the NA Speaker’s proposal the deputies welcomed the teachers and the pupils of Yerevan N 108 Secondary School, who visited the parliament within the NA Open Doors programme and observed the procedure of the sitting.

Galust Sahakyan has informed that, according to Article 13 of the NA Rules of Procedure, the RA NA deputy Tigran Urikhanyan submitted his resignation. The NA Speaker has reminded that after issuing the resignation at the NA sitting the deputy may take back his application on resignation during 15 days. If he does not take back, then his deputy authorities are suspended.

Afterwards the parliament touched upon the issue of the election of the Chairman of the RA Central Electoral Commission (CEC). The NA Speaker has informed that by the decision of the RA NA Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs, Tigran Mukuchyan’s candidacy was proposed in the position of the CEC Chairman.

The Chairman of the RA NA Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs Hovhannes Sahakyan noted that after the Constitutional Amendments held in 2015 the parliament should elect the CEC Chairman. Mr Sahakyan has informed that a substantial debate was held on Tigran Mukuchyan’s candidacy, during which the Committee members answered the questions concerning them.

Tigran Mukuchyan also answered the deputies’ questions, after which the MPs Lyudmila Sargsyan, Aram Manukyan, Nikol Pashinyan, Mikayel Melkumyan, Khosrov Harutyunyan, Tevan Poghosyan, Araik Hovhannisyan delivered speeches on the functions reserved to the CEC and the problems of the political system.

During the sitting the NA deputies welcomed the Delegation led by the Vice President of the Bundestag of the Federal Republic of Germany Johannes Singhammer, who were observing the procedure of the sitting.

The RA NA Deputy Speaker delivered an extraordinary speech on the issue and presented his observations on the CEC activities, electoral processes, as well as the local self-government elections.

The NA Deputy Speaker has highlighted the role of the CEC in the election processes and documented that during the recent years improvement of the electoral processes was noticed and in that issue the National Assembly has its unique role. To his assessment, the role of the CEC and Tigran Mukuchyan is also big in the improvement of the electoral processes. The NA Deputy Speaker has underlined that during these years the CEC has reached serious successes and has added that the international observers give the best evaluation to the results of the CEC activities: since 2011 today no international observation mission has put under question either the results of the election, or the professionalism of the CEC Chairman and its members.

Eduard Sharmazanov called on his colleagues to vote for the nominated candidacies, so in future the CEC Chairman and its members will have opportunity to take steps stemming from the interests of our society and strengthen the trust towards the electoral processes among the RA citizens.

Talking about the local self-government elections, Mr Sharmazanov has noted that the RA citizens voted for the all political forces, which have structures, know how to work during the elections and present programmes.

The debate of the issue will continue at October 5 sitting.

In accordance with the law the NA Rules of Procedure, the last hour of the sitting was allotted to the deputies’ announcements.