Corruption in the Islamic Republic; Iran’s regime faces new wave of corruption allegations related to coronavirus
Institutions and officials of Iran’s ruling regime have faced increasing accusations of corruption, widespread mismanagement, and even violation of United States sanctions in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
According to Fox News television network, the Ministry of Health, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and two charitable foundations affiliated with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei have been accused of committing violations and administrative corruption during the importation of coronavirus tests from South Korea.
Fox News says it has reviewed a copy of a letter sent two months ago by a private company called “Airgan Mehr” to the head of the special coronavirus task force at Iran’s Ministry of Health. According to Fox News, this letter reported a “competition” between the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the “Barekat Foundation,” which is controlled by Khamenei.
It appears these two groups are in dispute with each other over obtaining exclusive rights to import and distribute test kits from the South Korean company “MiCo BioMed.”
Previously, Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, issued a statement titled “Khamenei’s Lies About the Wuhan Virus Endanger People’s Lives,” in which he discussed the Iranian regime’s lies and cover-ups regarding the coronavirus.
Voice of America had also previously reported that the Islamic Republic’s own method of information dissemination and cover-up, during which several high-ranking government and management officials have also been infected with coronavirus, has faced considerable criticism both inside and outside the country. Government officials, who had delayed and only announced the spread of coronavirus in Iran after parliamentary elections, instead of quarantining cities and closing religious sites like other countries dealing with the virus outbreak, only said that coronavirus should be taken seriously and asked people not to leave their homes.
The United States has repeatedly condemned institutionalized financial corruption, rent-seeking, and the plunder of Iran’s natural resources by affiliates of the country’s ruling regime, considering them among the main causes of Iran’s economic and financial problems. Among others, Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, tweeted several times about Islamic Republic officials, saying they engaged in corruption instead of helping the people.
Source: Voice of America
