Etelat Newspaper: If you plan to increase the price of gasoline, be honest.

For about a month, rumors have been circulating in the media about the government's intention to increase the prices of gasoline and energy carriers, but they have been immediately denied by government officials.

The Etelaat newspaper, which recently appointed Abbas Salehi, "one of Rouhani's ministers," as its editor-in-chief, wrote in a memo to the government: "If you really want to increase the price of gasoline, don't deny it."

Some gas station owners in different regions of the country announced in recent days that the government has collected or made their fuel quota cards unavailable.

In response to these rumors, the Islamic Republic's Oil Minister told reporters on Tuesday: "I am announcing today that not only is there no discussion of increasing gasoline prices, and this issue is not on the government's agenda, but I also completely deny the rumors circulating in cyberspace and society that gas station owners are collecting fuel cards, and there is nothing on the agenda of the Ministry of Oil and the government in this regard."

The Etelaat newspaper further writes: “The numerous public observations on this matter are not something that can be ignored by denial or denial, especially since the government has implemented special plans to allocate gasoline to individuals instead of cars that can be sold at the open rate in Kish and Qeshm, and now it is believed that it may be trying to implement it throughout the country. If the government has any thoughts about increasing fuel prices, there is no way to deny it because this will increase distrust.”

Not long ago, Ebrahim Raisi, referring to the “surgery on Iran’s economy,” said: “The main part of the surgery is still to be done.” According to experts, his reference to an unknown event was the government’s decision to increase the price of energy carriers, which has led to increased speculation. Some rumors indicate that the price of gasoline will increase to 18,000 Tomans per liter.

It is worth noting that in 2019, the government at the time always denied the news reported in the media about the increase in the price of gasoline and energy carriers, but at midnight on Thursday, November 14, the National Iranian Petroleum Products Distribution Company announced in a statement, referring to the resolution of the Supreme Council for Economic Coordination of the Heads of the Three Powers, that: "Free gasoline will be sold for 3,000 tomans per liter, and rationed gasoline will be sold for 1,500 tomans per liter from now on." A decision that led to a wave of public protests in various cities across the country.

But then-President Hassan Rouhani later said, "I was not aware of the high price of gasoline, and like many of you, I learned about it on Friday morning."

Source: Voice of America