In Armenia, both the people and the government — including officials — lack knowledge and education, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said during a government meeting on Thursday.

Axar.az reports according to Armenian media, “We need to think about the shortage of knowledge. What I’m saying today means that I / we have been stuck in the same grade for seven years... I’ve remained in first grade for seven years,” Pashinyan said.

He questioned why ordinary people lack knowledge.

“For one reason — because we (the government) lack knowledge. We are the ones guiding these people, we are their leaders. We are leading them toward poverty and ignorance,” Pashinyan stated.

Last week, Prime Minister Pashinyan also said that the Armenian government is pursuing the wrong personnel policy, as the country is facing a deep staffing crisis.