Top Armenian Official Enjoys Banana Monopoly: Imported 12 Tons In 20

TOP ARMENIAN OFFICIAL ENJOYS BANANA MONOPOLY: IMPORTED 12 TONS IN 2014

Kristine Aghalaryan

15:00, March 26, 2015

Nikol Pashinyan focused on the price of bananas during today’s session
of Armenia’s parliament.

The opposition MP said that while the yellow fruit costs 500 or 600
drams per kilo, at a stretch 700 drams, throughout Europe, in Armenia
a kilo goes for more than 700.

Pashinyan wagged his finger at Mihran Poghosyan, who heads the
country’s Compulsory Enforcement Service, for controlling the banana
market with the backing of Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan.

“And against this backdrop, the man is a patriot. Do you believe it?

He takes new employees to the Genocide Memorial and has them take an
oath swearing ‘In the name of the homeland…’ If you’re a patriot
let the people live in Armenia. Let them run their businesses. If
you’re such a patriot don’t do things that force people to leave,”
Pashinyan declared at the parliament session.

Now, let’s take a look at the amount of bananas Mihran Poghosyan,
who enjoys a monopoly over the fruit, imports to Armenia.

According to figures provided by the National Statistical Service,
12,058 tons of bananas were imported to Armenia in 2014.

Amazingly, Armenia has also been an exporter of bananas in the past.

Ridiculous you say. Check out the following Hetq article Armenia is
Exporting Bananas.

Hetq had discovered that up until 2009 Ketrin LLC, a company founded
by Mihran Poghosyan, was importing bananas, processing the fruit into
banana oil, and then allegedly exporting it to the Bahamas.

Nothing of the kind ever happened. Ketrin forged the documents and
sold the bananas in Armenia.

In the end, Ketrin got away with not paying the government taxes
amounting to some 443.7 million drams ($1.479 million).

You can read about these financial shenanigans in the Hetq article
“A Tale of Bananas in Banana Armenia”

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress