Iran: MP Raises Possibility Of Replacing Ahmadinejad
Iranian MP Ahmad Tavakoli has announced that if President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad does not reduce the frequency of his “errors, replacing him should not be delayed.”
In an interview on Tuesday with the Etemad daily, Tavakoli said: “Fourteen months are left in Mr. Ahmadinejad’s mandate, and we hope that this path is taken in such a manner that his service is not left half-done.”
“Replacing a president in the last year of his service can be very costly,” Tavakoli said. “Therefore, every effort must be made to assure nothing goes wrong.”
Tavakoli added that MPs will “try talks with the president” in order to make sure his “service is boosted and his errors and mistakes are brought to a minimum, so that the country can get through this year bearing the least possible costs.”
The conservative Member of Parliament went on to say: “If we want things to improve, first Parliament must bring the president in line with the laws. This does not necessarily mean that we have to constantly harp on questionings and impeachments, but rather we must establish constant talks.”
Many of Ahmadinejad’s critics have been trying to summon him to Parliament for questioning on a series of irregularities attributed to his administration and to the president himself.
Tavakoli added that talks must continue. But if they do not yield positive results, says Tavakoli, then after the new Parliament has been established and all efforts to keep the president within the bounds of the law have been exhausted, removing the president will be the last resort.
For the past year, a motion has been in the works to question the president on 10 issues and areas of concern for lawmakers.
Ahmadinejad has been at odds with Parliament in the past year, and his brief refusal to follow the Supreme Leader’s order with regard to the Minister of Intelligence made him a fair target for his critics in Parliament.
