Raisi's Government Efforts to Organize Trade Affairs; This Time Forming a 'Ministry' Instead of an 'Organization'

After much debate, the Islamic Republic's cabinet has shelved the bill to form a 'Trade Organization' and approved a bill to establish a 'Ministry' of Trade, which will be sent to the Islamic Consultative Assembly at the earliest opportunity. Some experts and analysts view this government action as a means to help retain 'Fatemi Amin' in the government team, believing that with promises to strengthen trade-related issues, the impeachment will not succeed. The website 'Khabar Online' reacted to this issue, posing the question of whether the proposal to form a Ministry of Trade is to assist the minister or to reform the structure. Economic expert Vahid Shaghaghi stated: 'The merger incurred a cost for the country's economy, and separating the ministries also carries a cost, which primarily makes this decision and proposal a mix of comedy and tragedy; until we witness a real event.' The formation of the Ministry of Trade has been approved by the government, while the bill to create the 'Trade Organization and Market Regulation' was sent to the parliament on February 6 of last year with an urgency clause signed by the president, aiming to organize the market and prevent unreasonable price increases. Accordingly, on the verge of the impeachment of Seyyed Reza Fatemi Amin, the government's decision to form the Ministry of Trade has raised suspicions, and most experts and analysts assess it as a move to retain the 'Industry, Mine, and Trade' minister in Ibrahim Raisi's administration. In this context, Lotfollah Siyahkali, a member of the Parliament's Industries and Mines Commission, told the 'Entekhab' website: 'The Ministry of Industry, Mine, and Trade was created by merging several ministries, therefore a capable person should manage it; it seems the government wants to preserve Fatemi Amin's ministerial position by shrinking the Ministry of Industry, Mine, and Trade and creating a Trade Organization, while the expansion and contraction of ministries should not be defined with the aim of keeping individuals.' According to this report, the merger of the two ministries of Industry and Mine and Trade during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government faced many criticisms, to the extent that 'Khabar Online' wrote about this issue: 'The merger of the Ministries of Industry and Mine and Trade occurred after Ahmadinejad's eleven-day absence and was suddenly approved in the parliament without expert backing and without the Research Center of the Parliament's opinion.' The formation of the Ministry of Trade was also raised once during Hassan Rouhani's government, and even the bill to establish it was approved by the cabinet and presented to the parliament, but it failed to become law during the process. The establishment of a Trade Organization; the government's confrontation with the parliament to evade oversight. Mohammad Mokhber's efforts for greater control over the economy; the establishment of a Trade Organization in the presidential institution.