Iran News: Regime Officials Acknowledge Economic Collapse and Dysfunction in Iran
Written by
Mansoureh Galestan
The unprecedented increase in the price of the dollar and the sharp decline in the value of the Iranian rial amid the regime’s internal strife between different factions have exacerbated the situation. Members of the regime’s parliament, in a direct attack on Ebrahim Raisi’s administration, declare it as the culprit behind the economic downturn.
In a striking admission, Moeinoddin Saeedi, a member of the regime’s parliament, has publicly acknowledged the country’s economic collapse and governmental dysfunction. Saeedi told the state-run Entekhab website on April 8, “We witness the daily increase in the price of the dollar; the government claims it does not recognize the official rate of 65,000 tomans per dollar, but your refusal to recognize does not matter at all in determining the price. Sometimes people say that we are facing a phenomenon of government dysfunction in the economy.
Saeedi added, “Negligence exists in all executive branches of the country; now the price of gold coins is rising and has affected the people’s table, yet no serious action has been taken by the government and the parliament.”
Another member of the regime’s Parliament, Javad Nikbin, expressed his concerns on the same day, stating, “Since yesterday, the exchange rate has risen by a thousand tomans. I remember in this very parliament last year, when the exchange rate exceeded thirty thousand tomans, my colleagues and I were saying the president should come and even be impeached. Today, the dollar price has surpassed 65,000 tomans, and even coins, which were once said to be 13 to 14 million tomans, are now exceeding 45 million tomans!”
Meanwhile, other members of the regime parliament criticized Raisi’s administration, declaring that the recent joint session between the parliament and the government on this matter has been futile.
Watch and judge why #Iranian state officials continue to warn each other against sinking the boat that is confronting the storm of #IranRevolution. pic.twitter.com/dDlUvOiSxR
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) January 13, 2023
Zabihollah Azami Saradoui, a member of parliament, said, “This session has yielded no results and does not contribute anything to the people’s livelihoods. Pessimistic forecasts suggest that the dollar will continue to fluctuate upwards this year. President Raisi says inflationary institutions need to be controlled, but people’s problems cannot be solved by mere rhetoric.”
MP Hojatoleslam Firouzian also expressed his disappointment, saying, “They have added 20% to the salaries of government employees, while with the increase in the exchange rate, more than 20% of their salaries are being deducted.”
Kazem Delkhosh Abatari, another member of the parliament, rejected Ebrahim Raisi’s claim that the dollar’s rise is due to regional circumstances, stating, “The dollar does not increase based on regional conflicts and international issues. The government is pouring the currency into the hands of those who know how to exploit it.”
Meanwhile, Yahya Ebrahimi warned, “A serious increase in the price of the dollar began before the Nowruz holidays, and now the price has reached around 65,000 tomans. If this trend continues, we can expect a dollar worth 100,000 tomans in the coming months. Inflation figures in the country are announced to be 40 or 50%, which is actually more, and day by day, people’s situation becomes more tragic and their table gets smaller.”