Iranian government spokesman: 60 million people need livelihood assistance
According to the Iranian government spokesman, the government's social and livelihood support plan will cover more than 18 million Iranian households. Rabiei also provided explanations regarding the government's fight against corruption.
On Wednesday, November 13, Ali Rabiei answered reporters' questions about the government's social and livelihood support plan, as well as administrative corruption, and several other issues.
According to the government spokesman, the number of households eligible for social support is likely to reach 60 million. According to Rabiei, this figure includes more than 18 million households.
Rabiei stated: "Some areas of the country are completely deprived and there are people who have always been in need. These include female heads of households and people with fixed incomes, including workers and retirees."
The presidential assistant for social communications clarified that middle to lower social classes will be included in this plan.
Rabiei further emphasized that there is a possibility of protest for people who are not included in the government's social and livelihood support, and "governors, district heads, the executive headquarters of the Ministry of Labor, and the Management and Planning Organization will carefully and quickly address the protests in coordination."
Regarding the ways to finance this plan, the government spokesman said: "Different scenarios are being considered in this regard so that we can allocate a significant amount for social and livelihood support. The economic dimensions and the non-inflationary nature of this type of financing were among other serious issues raised in the government. In this regard, the Central Bank has examined the inflationary effects of different scenarios, and we will have considerations to minimize the inflationary effects according to the payment method and type of expenditure. This method will definitely be implemented with the least inflationary effects."
According to Rabiei, starting Wednesday evening, the presenters will appear on television programs and explain the various aspects of the plan to the public.
Billionaire Questions
In response to a question about Rouhani's recent statements regarding the $2 billion confiscated by the US government, the government spokesman said: "$1.8 billion worth of bonds were purchased by the government after Mr. Khatami, and these bonds were purchased from an investment institution that had warned them to withdraw this money, but based on this warning, the money was not withdrawn at the appropriate time. The reason why this money was not withdrawn at the appropriate time was an ambiguity that the president intended, and we think that clarifying these ambiguities is what society needs today."
Ali Rabiei continued to address Babak Zanjani's financial issues, saying that he received $800 million from the bank and it must be determined who issued the order to transfer this money, "which was separate from the money earned from oil sales."
A government spokesman quoted President Rouhani as saying, “Under the guise of oil, the government has been taken, but it is not clear where the money has gone.” According to Rabiei, “there are significant numbers involved.”
Source: DW
