President of Islamic Azad University: Some Professors Speak Nonsense in Class

The president of Islamic Azad University on Wednesday, March 9, referred to some university professors as 'nonsense speakers' and stated that any professor who 'wants to harm religion, the Quran, and the Prophet will not be tolerated for a moment.' Farhad Rahbar, in a meeting with cultural deputies of Azad University units, said: 'A professor goes to class and says whatever nonsense he wants, and if we say anything to him, it is later announced that Islam is in danger.' Mr. Rahbar, who served as president of Tehran University for six years during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency, expelled a large number of professors not aligned with the government under the guise of 'retirement.' One of his other actions was the installation of security gates at Tehran University. He stated on Wednesday: 'The sword of the tongue today is annihilating the beliefs of students in our classrooms.' In the past week, the president of Islamic Azad University has expelled several professors, including Sadegh Zibakalam, a political science professor, and Goudarz Ekhtiar Jahromi, a law professor. In response to protests regarding the expulsion of professors from this university, Farhad Rahbar said: 'It is not befitting for a professor to try to prevent the implementation of the law and violate the law with demagoguery.' He cited the reason for the dismissal of these professors as being employed in multiple positions simultaneously. Mr. Rahbar also stated that these terminations are because Azad University wants to utilize its scholarships for professorship positions and thus requested the dismissal of part-time professors. In response to the question that one of the professors at Azad University (Sadegh Zibakalam) said he was 'expelled' from this university, he said: 'We did not expel anyone. Rather, we announced that your activities are illegal because you receive salaries from two places. You can leave Tehran University and be employed here, or you can stay at Tehran University and work at Azad University as an adjunct.' However, Sadegh Zibakalam stated that without being informed, after 25 years of collaboration, they withheld his salary for the month of Bahman, and he realized he had been 'expelled.' This political science professor acknowledged the existence of economic problems and the abundance of professors at Azad University, saying: 'It seems that not all reasons relate to economic issues because professors have been sidelined who do not think like the management of Azad University. Their overall approach to many issues does not align with the government's approach.' One news site reported on Wednesday, citing an informed source, that Farhad Rahbar submitted his resignation to Ali Akbar Velayati, the chairman of the board of trustees of Islamic Azad University, due to a disagreement, but hours later, the university spokesman denied this news.