Several Friday Prayer Leaders Call for Election of a President 'Without Divergence' from the Leader

Continuing the criticisms of Hassan Rouhani, several Friday prayer leaders in Iran on April 4 criticized the government's economic performance and called for the election of a president 'without divergence' from the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic. The Friday prayer leader of Tehran also urged the public not to elect 'influential individuals.' Kazem Sedighi, the Friday prayer leader of Tehran, referring to the 2017 presidential election, stated that 'it must be monitored that no one is under foreign influence' and 'we should elect those who have the ability to fight corruption.' According to the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA), he emphasized: 'The world has been building a foundation for influence in our elections and continues to do so. They want individuals to be elected who are under foreign influence, who will compromise the country's independence under the guise of development, and who will be completely dependent on foreigners.' Mr. Sedighi also called for the election of a president who 'is not from the elite class,' 'can feel poverty,' and 'will appoint revolutionary managers.' He also stated that some individuals acted 'shamelessly' in the 2009 presidential election and added that candidates must adhere to the law and 'respect the people's votes.' The stance of the Tehran Friday prayer leader can be seen in line with the statements of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, who has repeatedly warned about the efforts of the United States to 'infiltrate decision-making centers' in Iran and 'political, cultural, and security infiltration' after the Vienna nuclear agreement, and has called on institutions like the Revolutionary Guards to confront this issue. In recent weeks, some Friday prayer leaders have also spoken about the 2017 presidential election. For instance, Ahmad Khatami, the Friday prayer leader of Tehran, on March 2 warned about the 'enemy's' attempts to 'create tension' and repeat the events of 2009 in the upcoming election, urging candidates to 'submit to the people's votes.' He also accused foreign Persian-language media of intending to repeat the events of the 2009 presidential election. Meanwhile, Zain al-Abidin Qurbani, the Friday prayer leader of Rasht, stated on Friday that 'we must elect a president who aligns with the Supreme Leader's directives' and is 'without divergence' from him. Several Friday prayer leaders also criticized Hassan Rouhani's government performance, referring to the Supreme Leader's remarks about 'resistance economy.' For example, the Friday prayer leader of Shiraz said, 'Manipulating statistics does not feed the people, and we must think seriously about the economic situation of the people.' Asadollah Imani emphasized that 'serious action for employment and production revival is not seen in some officials.' Mohammad Reza Saeedi, the Friday prayer leader of Qom, also considered 'the existence of a liberal perspective as an obstacle to jihadist movements in the economic sphere' and stated that 'in a revolutionary perspective, economic growth must go hand in hand with social justice.' In the final days of 2016, after Ayatollah Khamenei expressed doubts about the accuracy of the government's economic statistics, Friday prayer leaders in cities across Iran also criticized the government's economic performance, a trend that continues. The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic has named 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, while defending his administration's performance and pointing to the improvement of economic indicators during his government, stated that 'even ten subsequent governments will not be able to solve all problems,' but the government has chosen a 'correct' path towards reducing problems. Meanwhile, Majid Ansari, the legal deputy of the President of Iran, stated on March 15 that the first two years of the government were 'spent on clearing the rubble' related to the actions of the previous government. He also commented that the attacks against Hassan Rouhani increased after his 'high vote' in an 'official poll.'