Taron Margaryan
Taron Margaryan 
| |
|---|---|
| Name in Armenian | Տարոն Անդրանիկի Մարգարյան |
| Birthplace | Yerevan |
| Birth date | 17 April 1978 |
| Lived in | Yerevan |
| Resides in | Yerevan |
| Languages | Armenian |
| Ethnicities | Armenian |
| Dialects | Eastern Armenian |
| Relatives | Andranik Margaryan |
Mayor of Yerevan from November 15, 2011 until his resignation on July 8, 2018. Son of Armenia's Prime Minister Andranik Markaryan.
Yerevan’s Embattled Mayor Resigns
9 July, 2018
Bowing to apparent pressure from Armenia’s new government, Yerevan Mayor Taron Markarian stepped down on Monday.
Markarian announced his resignation in a short written address to the city’s residents. He gave no reasons for the widely anticipated move.
“I have tried to listen to each of you and settle the capital’s problems step by step,” read the statement. “I have been committed to my programs and promises.In this regard, I expect the forgiveness of all those fellow citizens with whom I am parting ways.”
The statement came a few hours after Markarian met with members of Yerevan’s municipal council representing former President Serzh Sarkisian’s Republican Party (HHK). The 40-year-old mayor is a senior member of the HHK.
Markarian’s late father Andranik served as Armenia’s prime minister from 2000-2007. The latter headed the HHK until his sudden death in 2007.
Taron Markarian, in office since 2011, came under pressure to step down after mass protests brought down Sarkisian’s government in late April. The protest leader, Nikol Pashinian, took over as the country’s new prime minister on May 8.
Members of Pashinian’s Yelk alliance sitting on the HHK-controlled council have since repeatedly demanded Markarian’s resignation, accusing him of corruption and mismanagement. They have argued, in particular, that he has made a big personal fortune while in office.
Markarian rejected calls for his resignation until now, arguing that the HHK won the last municipal elections held in May 2017. He was the party’s mayoral candidate in those polls.
The pressure on Markarian grew in mid-June when the National Security Service (NSS) searched the offices of a municipal fund supervised by him. The Yerevan Fund’s executive director and another municipal official were detained on suspicion of extorting hefty payments to the charity from individuals seeking construction permits from the mayor’s office.
The embattled mayor has not been seen in public for the last two weeks. A Yelk councilor claimed on June 27 that Markarian signed a letter of resignation “two or three days ago” but will not publicize it for now. The municipal administration implicitly denied that.
Under a law on local self-government in Yerevan, the city council has to elect a new mayor within a month. It is not yet clear whether the HHK majority in the council will nominate a mayoral candidate.
https://www.azatutyun.am/a/29353401.html
Taron Margaryan’s message to Yerevan residents 09.07.2018
Dear co-citizens,
I’d like to inform you about my decision to resign from Yerevan Mayor’s office and to express my gratitude to each of you for cooperation and teamwork.
Throughout the way we have passed together I have always tried to hear out each of you and to step by step settle the problems of the capital, to stay faithful to my promise and programs. In this regard I apologize to all those citizens with whom our common path is interrupted.
I also thank my colleagues from Yerevan Council of Elders, the staffs of the administrative districts, partner organizations and individuals for teamwork and the way we have passed together.
Taron Margaryan
Yerevan Mayor
Yerevan Mayor Inaugurated
Ruzanna Stepanian
11.06.2013
Yerevan Mayor Taron Markarian received strong praise President Serzh Sarkisian on Tuesday as he was inaugurated for a four-year term more than one month after the ruling Republican Party’s victory in disputed municipal elections.
Markarian, 35, took the oath of office at a ceremony, attended by Sarkisian and other top state officials, in accordance with the official results of the May 5 elections rejected as fraudulent by the Armenian opposition.
The Republican Party (HHK) won 42 of the 65 seats in the municipal assembly, more than enough to re-install the HHK-affiliated incumbent. The Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK), a former member of Armenia’s governing coalition, came in second, getting 17 seats. The remaining 6 seats went to the Barev Yerevan (Hello Yerevan) opposition bloc of Raffi Hovannisian, Sarkisian’s main challenger in the February 2013 presidential election.
Like other opposition groups, Barev Yerevan refused to accept the legitimacy of the HHK’s landslide victory. Accordingly, its six councilors boycotted the inauguration. By contrast, their BHK colleagues were present at the ceremony, highlighting the ambiguous status of the party led by businessman Gagik Tsarukian.
Speaking at the ceremony, Sarkisian insisted that his party won a popular mandate to govern Yerevan for four more years. “I want to thank all Yerevan residents for trusting Taron Markarian and the list [of candidates] headed by him,” he said. “They trusted because in the past two years Taron Markarian distinguished himself as a modest, honest, and friendly mayor who is concerned with Yerevan’s problems.”
Sarkisian also praised the mayor’s track record. “Kudos to Yerevan’s mayor and Council of Elders that have managed, thanks to hard work, to again earn the trust of Yerevan residents,” he said.
Markarian, whose later father Andranik was Armenia’s prime minister from 2000-2007, took over as mayor in late 2011 following the surprise resignation of his HHK-backed predecessor, Karen Karapetian. He previously served as deputy mayor of the capital.
During the mayoral race Markarian faced harsh criticism from the opposition Armenian National Congress (HAK), which demanded a criminal investigation into the origin of his business assets and properties declared to the Central Election Commission (CEC). The HAK claimed that they are worth at least $6 million. The opposition party said Markarian’s failure to specify sources of his wealth gives it reason to suspect him of corruption.
The ruling HHK dismissed the allegations as a publicity stunt. Markarian likewise denied them, while failing to clarify how he made a fortune while in office.
Markarian remained evasive on the subject as he talked to journalists after his inauguration. “I have already answered this question in the media,” he said.
Sarkisian Picks New Yerevan Mayor
01.11.2011 Tigran Avetisian
Taron Markarian, a 33-year-old son of a former Armenian prime minister, is almost certain to become Yerevan’s new mayor after being nominated for the vacant post by President Serzh Sarkisian.
Sarkisian’s Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) announced on Tuesday that it will propose Markarian’s candidacy to the municipal assembly dominated by HHK members.
HHK spokesman Eduard Sharmazanov said the decision was initiated by Sarkisian and unanimously approved by the party’s governing body at a late-night meeting on Monday.
Markarian was already receiving congratulations from friends and sympathizers on his Facebook page on Tuesday. He did not respond to those messages.
Under Armenian law, Yerevan’s Council of Elders must elect by the end of this month a successor to Mayor Karen Karapetian who unexpectedly resigned late last week for still unclear reasons. Markarian, who has served as deputy mayor since 2009, was always seen as Karapetian’s most likely replacement.
“He has proved to be a good deputy mayor,” Sharmazanov told RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). “I think he has also demonstrated that his character corresponds to the standards set for state officials by President Serzh Sarkisian.”
“I am convinced that together with our municipality colleagues Taron Markarian can address the problems facing our capital,” he said.
The Yerevan municipality, meanwhile, said the Council of Elders will meet on Friday to decide practical modalities of the selection of the next mayor.
A senior member of the HHK, Markarian began his political career in 2005 when he was elected mayor of Yerevan’s northern Avan district at the age of 27. His late father Andranik was Armenia’s prime minister and the HHK leader at the time.
Markarian’s name was high on the list of HHK candidates in the May 2009 municipal elections which the ruling party won by a landslide amid opposition allegations of fraud. He was elected deputy mayor after the vote.
Sharmazanov insisted that the HHK is satisfied with the previous mayor’s performance.
Karapetian has attributed his resignation to “personal reasons” and “transfer to another work” and denied any political reasons for the surprise move. According to unconfirmed reports in the Armenian and Russian press, he has been offered a senior position in Russia’s Gazprom natural gas monopoly.
There has also been media speculation that Sarkisian regards Karapetian as a potential backer of his predecessor Robert Kocharian who is allegedly keen to resume political activities and challenge the current president.
New Yerevan Mayor Elected
15.11.2011 Ruzanna Stepanian
Taron Markarian, a 33-year-old son of a former Armenian prime minister, was unanimously elected as Yerevan’s new mayor by the government-controlled municipal assembly on Tuesday.
Markarian’s election became a forgone conclusion after President Serzh Sarkisian nominated him for the vacant post late last month. Sarkisian’s Republican Party of Armenia (HHK), which has a solid majority in the city’s Council of Elders, promptly endorsed the move.
The nomination followed the unexpected resignation of the previous Yerevan mayor, Karen Karapetian. Three other high-ranking Armenian officials, notably parliament speaker Hovik Abrahamian, resigned or were sacked shortly after Karapetian’s exit.
Analysts have attributed those changes to Sarkisian’s desire to cement his positions ahead of parliamentary elections due in May. Some of them believe that the president is keen to ward off a potential challenge from his predecessor Robert Kocharian.
A senior member of the HHK, Markarian began his political career in 2005 when he was elected mayor of Yerevan’s northern Avan district at the age of 27. His late father Andranik was Armenia’s prime minister and the HHK leader at the time.
Markarian’s name was high on the list of HHK candidates in the May 2009 municipal elections which the ruling party won by a landslide amid opposition allegations of fraud. He was elected deputy mayor after the vote.
Speaking to journalists after his election, Markarian said he will perform his duties “with great care.” “The system of local government is dear to my heart,” he said.
The new mayor also indicated plans to continue his predecessor’s controversial policy of closing and dismantling kiosks across the Armenian capital. Still, he said he will be seeking a negotiated settlement with the owners of large kiosks remaining in the city center.