Confirmation of Financial Corruption and Arrest of Municipal Officials in Urmia; Mayor of Sari Dismissed

During the investigation into the corruption case of the municipality and city council of Urmia, officials announced that the mayor of one of the districts of this city was a "broker and fixer for a gang." Additionally, the mayor of Sari was dismissed after being impeached by the city council of the provincial capital of Mazandaran. According to the Iran Watch website on Wednesday, October 10, a session was held to address the impeachment of the mayor of Sari in the Islamic Council of this city, resulting in Mohammad Hossein Qabadi being dismissed with seven votes. The reasons for his impeachment were not mentioned in this report. The media also reported from Urmia that during the corruption case of the municipality and city council, a second wave of arrests took place on Tuesday, October 9, and among those arrested was the mayor of one of the districts of Urmia. Hossein Panahi, the spokesperson for the Urmia City Council, confirmed the arrest of the mayor of one of the districts of Urmia. According to this report, "in recent days, five to six experts and officials from the municipalities of Urmia districts" have been arrested, as well as "several middle managers, experts, and brokers" in the Urmia municipality, and the arrest of the mayor of one of the districts was "related to brokering and fixing for this gang." Previously, in the last days of Shahrivar, the public and revolutionary prosecutor of Mahabad in West Azerbaijan province announced that more than 20 people had been arrested in connection with the case of "corruption in the municipality and Islamic council of Mahabad," of which "six were main members of the Islamic council of the city." Financial and administrative corruption in various institutions of the Islamic Republic, including municipalities, has been reported multiple times. For instance, in recent months, one of the managers of the first district municipality of Tehran, in an interview, revealed the buying and selling of municipal positions in Tehran, stating about his hiring process: "I was asked for 400 gold coins and 450 thousand dollars; otherwise, I would not have reached that position." Additionally, see: Disclosure of "buying and selling positions" in Tehran municipality; Alireza Zakani is approaching "impeachment." "Hossein Hossein, their slogan, embezzlement is their pride" protest of defrauded car buyers. Pensioners of steel in Isfahan: "If one embezzlement is reduced, our problem will be solved." Economic protests in Iran; gathering of pensioners in Kermanshah and strike of oil workers in Bushehr. Discovery of corruption in the distribution of 2 million bags of flour outside the government network, with a profit of 1200 billion tomans from the livelihoods of the people.