Iranian parliament challenges Ahmadinejad's economic plan

Iranian MPs Mesbahi Moghaddam, Tavakoli and Radan

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad faces further pressure from the parliament as the economic experts of the parliament issued a statement challenging his economic expertise and reminding him that he does not have the right to disobey the laws passed by the nation’s lawmakers.

Yesterday Mahmoud Ahmadinejad condemned the parliament’s alterations to his proposed bill regarding government subsidies and claimed he will not abide by the approved bill of the parliament before it was put to a public poll.

As government is planning to scrap all its subsidies, Ahmadinejad has set a 40-thousand-billion-touman ($40 billion) income for the government in his bill. The parliament has cut this amount in half claiming that otherwise the inflation rate will reach fifty percent.

Ahmad Tavakoli, Elias Radan and Gholamreza Mesbahi Moghaddam challenged Ahmadinejad’s proposal and said they are ready to argue against his proposals in an open debate.

The parliament’s decision to reduce the government’s income through the subsidies has also been approved by the Guardian Council which is why Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has resorted to calling for a public poll on the matter. Such a poll can only take place if two third of the parliament agrees to it.

The government has been preparing the bill regarding better targeting of public subsidies for over two years claiming that its objectives are “greater fairness, better distribution of resources, restructuring of Iran’s economy and managing consumption in order to avoid waste and dissipation of energy resources.”