Iran's conservative lawmakers stand by parliament's decision

Iranian parliament

Conservative faction of Iran’s parliament, which constitutes the largest group in the parliament, issued a statement today that the government subsidies bill should not be turned into “a political struggle on the sidelines.”

They maintain that the parliament believes that government subsidies should be eliminated in the course of a five-year period in order to buffer the unpredictable effects if it.

The conservative MPs say that the parliament is against a sudden change because it could have difficult and adverse effects on people's lives.

They claim that the differences between the parliament and the government on this issue are of a consultation nature and and such discussions “advance the objectives of the Revolution.”

Last year, Iranian parliament approved the bill regarding elimination of government subsidies allowing the government to draw a $20 billion income through this process while Ahmadinejad’s bill had proposed a $40 billion income for the government.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rejected the bill and declared that he refuses to put it into effect unless it is put to a public poll.

Parliament’s speaker and deputy speaker criticized Ahmadinejad’s statement contending that he is in violation of the constitution.

Ayatollah Khamenei urged the government to take heed of the passed laws of the parliament and also asked the parliament to assist the government in carrying out this law.

Yesterday Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s parliamentary deputy urged Ahmad Tavakoli, Elias Naderan and Gholamreza Mesbahi Moghaddam to step forward to resolve the problems in executing the law regarding government subsidies.

These three MPs have been staunch critics of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s economic policies.