Imams Criticize the Economic Performance of Rouhani's Government Again

Continuing the criticisms from the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic and his close associates regarding the performance of Hassan Rouhani's government in the economic sector, the Friday prayer leaders of Iran have now addressed the issue of employment, once again expressing doubts about positive economic statistics and stating that the government's efforts in reducing unemployment have not been "forward-moving." According to Tasnim News Agency, Ahmad Khatami, the Friday prayer leader of Tehran, in his sermon on April 1, referred to Western sanctions against Iran, stating that "the enemy is using the weapon of economy" and that the Supreme Leader has been pursuing "resistance economy, production, and employment" for several years. He mentioned the Supreme Leader's designation of the year 1396 (2017) as a year for "devout, revolutionary, and jihadist managers," "investment security," "preventing excessive imports and considering imports that have domestic equivalents as forbidden," and "preventing smuggling" as "requirements for employment and production." Abbasali Soleimani, the Friday prayer leader of Zahedan, also referred to the Supreme Leader's remarks, stating that "government officials have not performed well in the economic field and have not made forward progress in employment." Ahmad Alamolhoda, the Friday prayer leader of Mashhad, emphasized that "resistance economy has a defensive aspect for the religion and the system, and in the battlefield that the enemy has formed against our system, we must use this method to defend our religion." He considered employment as "defending the system" and added: "If our youth are unemployed and, in their desperation, conclude that the Islamic system is ineffective and turn to another system, the enemy's goal will be achieved." Hassan Rouhani, hours after the Supreme Leader's Nowruz message, stated that 800,000 graduates enter the job market annually, and if 700,000 jobs are created each year, 500,000 people will still be added to the unemployed. On November 1, 2016, Rouhani had similarly warned that in 1395 (2016), 1.2 million job seekers entered the job market, but the government cannot respond to this number of applicants. The Statistical Center of Iran announced that the unemployment rate reached 12.3% in the fall of 1395 (2016), which is a 0.4% decrease compared to the summer. Officials of Rouhani's government also claim that the previous government created "only 14,000" jobs. Ali Rabiei, the Minister of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare, emphasized that according to a report from the Statistical Center, in the previous government, "at best, only 75,000" job opportunities were created annually. However, officials from Ahmadinejad's government had previously announced that during his presidency, "eight million jobs" were created. Nevertheless, the Supreme Leader and his close associates have expressed doubts about the accuracy of the government's economic statistics, stating that these statistics have had no impact on people's lives. In this context, Gholamreza Shafieizadeh, the interim Friday prayer leader of Rasht, said that in the field of employment, "we should not pay too much attention to statistics." He added: "People should feel the increase in employment statistics in the field and in practice, and employment statistics will only increase when the number of unemployed decreases in the field." Hashim Hosseini Bushehri, the Friday prayer leader of Qom, also called for the use of "jihadist and revolutionary managers" and "managers who can utilize the internal capacities of the country" to solve economic problems. In the last days of 1395 (2016), after Ayatollah Khamenei expressed doubts about the accuracy of the government's economic statistics, Friday prayer leaders from several cities also criticized the government's economic performance, a trend that continues. The Supreme Leader has designated the new year as "resistance economy: production, employment" and stated that there is "a significant gap between the actions taken and the expectations of the people and the leadership." In contrast, Hassan Rouhani, defending his performance, while referring to the positive economic indicators during his administration, stated that "even ten subsequent governments will not be able to solve all the problems," but the government has chosen a "correct" path that is moving towards reducing problems.