Anti-Corruption National Initiative
ANTI-CORRUPTIONNATIONALINITIATIVE

Around 420 Million Drams — $1.135 Million — to “Domino Video Production” for the Expected “Military Parade–Report”: Contract Without a Tender

168.am reports that the authorities have entrusted the organization of the Republic Day event scheduled for May 28 to “Domino Video Production” LLC, without a tender procedure. According to the article, the contract, worth around 420 million drams, was concluded through an urgent procurement procedure, while the event, although officially presented as a “report,” includes a military parade, stage performances, and special effects according to its technical description.

168.am notes that the event is to include large-scale decorations of Republic Square, a tricolor fireworks display, the use of state symbols, and broadcasting on Public Television. The publication also emphasizes that Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had previously avoided the term “military parade,” citing its sensitivity in relation to the peace agenda, but later used precisely that word on social media.

The article also refers to the “Domino” companies’ previous state contracts. According to 168.am, organizations owned by Ruzanna Vardanyan and her husband, Ashot Arakelyan, have received a number of major contracts from various state agencies in recent years, most of which were also carried out without an open tender. 168.am recalls that it had previously attempted to find out details of the costs of state events as well, but had not received responses.

168.am

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Hetq: The 300,000-Dram “Opel” Leased for 1.99 Million Drams a Year: An Intriguing State Procurement Story Involving the Brother of Civil Contract MP Karen Hambardzumyan

In the picture on the left is Karen Hambardzumyan, a former Prosperous Armenia Party member, now a Civil Contract member, formerly Governor of Syunik Province and currently a Civil Contract MP. In the picture on the right is his brother, Tigran Hambardzumyan. In 2025, the latter purchased a 1998 Opel vehicle for 300,000 drams and leased it to the “Sisian Territorial Pedagogical-Psychological Support Center” SNCO for 1,990,000 drams per year.

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The Tsaghkadzor Sports Complex in the Hands of the Zakaryan Family: Hetq’s Investigation

Hetq’s investigation reconstructs the path by which Tsaghkadzor’s main sports complex passed from the state into the hands of Ishkhan Zakaryan’s family.

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“You for Us, Us for You”: Is the State Budget the Ruling Party’s Pocket?

While ordinary citizens are under a heavy tax burden, and many businesses struggle to survive under conditions of market competition, the government has opened the “doors” of the state budget for the “chosen.” An investigation by Infocom.am reveals one of the darkest corners of Armenia’s political-business system: businesses exempted from customs duties express their “gratitude” to the ruling “Civil Contract” (CP) party and the “My Step” Foundation headed by the Prime Minister’s wife, Anna Hakobyan, in the form of multi-million-dram donations.

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The Overthrow of the Constitutional Order in Armenia: How Pashinyan’s Government Usurped the Judicial and Legislative Branches

The Constitution of the Republic of Armenia places the principle of separation and balancing of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches at the foundation of the exercise of state power. Article 5 of the Constitution formulates the structure of government in precisely these terms, while Article 162 establishes that justice is administered only by courts, and any interference in the administration of justice is prohibited.

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“Just Business?” Narek Nalbandyan’s Interview Raises New Questions

Nalbandyan has tried to present the expansion of his business as the result exclusively of economic calculations—bank financing, investments, acquisition of troubled assets, auctions, and market risk. He has denied the existence of any personal, family, or business ties with Nikol Pashinyan and his family. However, when the conversation reaches the most sensitive questions—the purchase price of HrazdanCement, the course of the auctions, former employees’ unpaid wages, and possible ties with the authorities—the same pattern can be observed in the answers: a specific question is followed by a general formulation, while the essence of the issue is shifted into the realm of documents, procedures, or general economic logic.

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