Jahangiri: I Was Advised to Remain Silent, but If Necessary, I Will Resume Criticism

Ishaq Jahangiri, the first vice president of Hassan Rouhani, stated that despite being advised by 'certain individuals' to 'remain silent,' he would reignite his 'engine' of criticism if deemed 'necessary.' Jahangiri made these remarks on Tuesday, March 6, during a conference with governors, political directors, and provincial governors across Iran. He mentioned, 'I have spoken a lot about the bad period of the country {during Ahmadinejad's presidency}, and at some point, people advised me to remain silent, to which I agreed.' He added that currently, Ahmadinejad is 'questioning the entire government and calling for early elections without engineering.' Jahangiri did not specify who advised him to stay silent but previously indicated that his relationship with the Supreme Leader had cooled after his explicit criticisms of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government and other candidates during this year's presidential debates. In an interview with the British newspaper Financial Times, published on February 19, he mentioned that he had not met with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei since the elections. He stated, 'I have a very good relationship with the Supreme Leader, but I may have overstepped during the elections. I hope to meet him soon.' Jahangiri strongly criticized conservative candidate Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf during the first debate, implicitly accusing him of employing those responsible for the attack on the Saudi embassy in his campaign. He also criticized the 'heavy-handed security and judicial responses to culture and social issues,' stating that before Rouhani took office, 'everyone was confined to their homes, and they faced oppression, leading to a political environment where $700 billion of the country's income was spent.' In his remarks on Tuesday, Jahangiri referred to the street protests in various cities in December and warned of the increasing 'hatred, anger, and resentment of the people towards the authorities and the regime.' He emphasized, 'We must not allow the people's protests to turn into hatred and anger. Our art should be to respond to the people's protests.' At least 25 people were killed during the recent protests, and according to judicial officials, three detainees committed 'suicide' in prison. Thousands were arrested during these protests, and legal cases have been opened against several, including at least 50 students. Jahangiri also deemed the portrayal of the government as 'ineffective' as a 'mistake,' asserting that Rouhani's administration has achieved 'great things,' but 'more actions are needed.' Opponents of Rouhani's government criticize the JCPOA agreement and label the government's statistics on unemployment reduction and inflation control as 'incorrect.'