Third Debate and Economic Disputes

On Friday, April 23, the third and final debate of the electoral candidates ended, where multiple economic issues were discussed, both in terms of executive affairs and the personal lives of the candidates. The candidates made extensive accusations against each other, which has been widely reflected on social media. Users have focused on specific parts of the candidates' speeches, such as economic corruption, astronomical salaries, and real estate issues. Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf addressed Eshaq Jahangiri, stating that when in a government, some members and managers who control the economy become the founders of astronomical salaries, like Jahangiri, who approved multi-billion bonuses during his ministry. In response, Jahangiri tweeted, "Let me be clear, if they find and raise a gray point in my life, I will kiss their hands, and if they find evidence, they should submit it to the judiciary." Websites and social media affiliated with the principlist faction also published documents regarding Jahangiri's alleged astronomical bonuses and violations. The Tasnim News Agency revealed a document from the Tourism Bank showing that 200 million was granted to Jahangiri's brother as a bonus. Qalibaf's official channel published a document regarding Jahangiri's house, stating that in 1999, when Jahangiri was a minister, the Tehran Housing and Urban Development Organization allocated a plot of land in Vanak, a northern area of Tehran, to him for 53,488,025 tomans, which was only 15% of its actual value at the time, receiving an 85% discount. Jahangiri currently lives in that house. Hassan Rouhani, during the third debate, addressed Qalibaf's accusations and said, "We should not speak unethically. Mr. Qalibaf, why do you use unethical language? You have been demolishing for four years with all the facilities, taking luxurious buildings in northern Tehran, making films against the government; there is no need for further demolition, and the people will announce their decision on April 29." On Saturday, in response to these remarks, the Tasnim News Agency published documents regarding Rouhani's house, stating that in 1989, Rouhani received a 790-square-meter plot in West Town for just 2,320,000 tomans, which is a little over 3,000 tomans per square meter, with the actual value of the property being over 70 times the purchase price. A plot of about 800 square meters in West Town today is worth over 19 billion tomans. In the debate, Jahangiri stated that Qalibaf has a habit of lying, saying, "The government proudly pursued the issue of astronomical salaries, and corrupt managers were dismissed. Mr. Qalibaf, what did you do with people's properties? You auctioned off 2,200 billion tomans of people's properties. The prosecutor said that so far, 59 cases of violations regarding astronomical properties have been identified, and you lobbied to prevent the parliament from pursuing it." Social media supporting Rouhani and reformists also published documents regarding the allocation of astronomical properties to several government officials. Ebrahim Raisi, in part of the third debate, asked why the government taxes shopkeepers instead of those who smuggle and why it does not prevent corruption. In response, MP Mahmoud Sadeghi tweeted that if Raisi seeks transparency and fights corruption, he should first explain what happened to the honest inspector of the Inspection Organization who discovered the judiciary's deposit accounts. Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf also requested other candidates to declare their assets in his channel. Radio Farda does not confirm the accuracy or inaccuracy of these documents and claims and only reflects them.