Gasoline Price Hike; Parliament Moves Toward Impeaching Rouhani
28 parliamentary representatives have begun collecting signatures for an impeachment motion against Rouhani. The motion includes charges of failure to manage market regulation, inability to control currency exchange rates, and a 300 percent increase in gasoline prices. Rouhani has ordered that livelihood assistance payments begin from Monday.
On Sunday afternoon, November 26, Mohammad Ghasem Osmani, representative from Boukan, resigned in protest of the government’s decision to triple gasoline prices. According to the ILNA news agency quoting Osmani: “If the parliament speaker is to express his view in decision-making centers, what are we doing in parliament? In protest of this matter, I submit my resignation to the presidium.”
The website “Etemad Online” reported, based on its sources, that Mahmoud Sadeqi, representative from Tehran, Ghasem Jasemi, representative from Kermanshah, Mohammad Javad Abtahi, representative from Khomeini Shahr, and Mohammad Javad Fathi, representative from Tehran, are preparing to resign.
Simultaneously, 28 parliamentary representatives have prepared an impeachment motion against Hassan Rouhani and are in the process of collecting signatures for it. Jalal Mahmoudzadeh, a member of the Hope faction, told the website “Alef”: “This motion has six axes, among which we can point to failure to manage market regulation, inflation and price increases, inability to control currency exchange rates, rising unemployment, and a 300 percent increase in gasoline prices.”
Mahmoudzadeh reported that the signatories of the motion are from various political factions in parliament.
According to the parliament’s internal regulations, impeaching the president requires the signatures of at least one-third of all representatives, and a vote of no confidence in the president requires two-thirds of votes.
The impeachment motion against Rouhani is proceeding while Sunday morning’s main discussion among representatives was about impeaching the parliament speaker. Critics of Ali Larijani say he based his opinion on his own view expressed in the meeting of the three branches’ leaders, rather than on the views of the people’s representatives.
Hassan Rouhani, on Sunday afternoon, November 26, emphasized in a cabinet meeting that the basis and goal of the government in the livelihood support plan is to help middle-income and low-income families who are under economic pressure due to economic sanctions. Rouhani ordered the budget and planning organization to begin disbursing livelihood assistance payments from Monday.
Rouhani said: “Protest is the people’s right, but the calculation of protest is different from rioting.”
Source: DW
