Today, on 22 September, the staff of the Armenian State University of Economics and a part of the students protested in front of the government building, demanding that Diana Galoyan, elected as ASUE Rector by 2/3 of the votes of ASUE Board members in the competition held on July 17, to appoint her to her position in accordance with the law.

Mikael Melkumyan, a member of the “Prosperous Armenia” faction of the National Assembly, also came in front of the government to support the students and the teaching staff.

He said that he had written a letter to the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports, but had not yet received an answer. Mikael Melkumyan said that he did not understand the reason why the government was not confirming the election results.

The lecturers stressed that their demand was not political. They just want to know when they will get the approval of the government; they will start working normally, because many works at the university are left unfinished due to the lack of a rector.

Vice-rector Armen Grigoryan and several lecturers were allowed to enter the government building for talks. About half an hour after the meeting, Vice-Rector Armen Grigoryan said that they had met with the responsible employee of the Citizens’ Reception and Application Review Department in the government building, but had not received a clear answer. They noted that the presentation of the question could take hours.

“After all, we are intellectuals and we have no political goals, we are not going to stay here for a long time. We will go to university now; we will wait for hours at the university, when we will be given a final rational answer as to why our legally elected rector has not been appointed by law to date. Whether they will appoint, or not, what is the problem that they have not appointed yet,” ASUE Vice-Rector Armen Grigoryan told journalists.

Notably that earlier Iravaban.net wrote that Diana Galoyan’s election as rector of the University is legally vulnerable.

Ruben Hayrapetyan, member of the Yerevan Council of Elders, former acting rector of ASUE, also expressed a number of concerns about his election.