Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, Iran’s president, was summoned to the country’s outgoing parliament on Wednesday to answer accusations of disloyalty and mismanagement.
He responded with defiance and mockery that outraged his political foes.
It was the first time in the Islamic republic’s history that an Iranian president had been called before the legislature, illustrating a tense power struggle between competing conservative factions after parliamentary elections on March 2. The showdown was seen as a key test of who holds the upper hand after the vote, with critics of the president so far winning most of the new parliament’s 290 seats.
Mr Ahmadi-Nejad gave no indication that his position had been weakened, teasing MPs for holding fake degrees, accusing them of giving themselves high salaries compared with most public employees and berating them for trying to impose social restrictions on the country’s youth.
The president’s strength in the next parliament, which convenes in June, remains unclear. Many of his supporters disguised their affiliation in the election in order to get through vetting procedures instigated by his political enemies.
The allegiance of dozens of independent candidates is still uncertain while about a quarter of the seats will be decided in a run-off next month.
“Mr Ahmadi-Nejad’s language today shows he has not suffered a major defeat in the election and he may even enjoy a lot of support in the next parliament,” said one political analyst.
The summons took place after about a quarter of MPs signed questions covering the president’s alleged failures. These included accusations of disloyalty to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader, and questions on the faltering economy, unemployment and even the financing of the Tehran metro.
One of the main questions concerned the president’s apparent defiance of an order from Ayatollah Khamenei – whose instructions are meant to be followed unconditionally – not to sack the intelligence minister, Heydar Moslehi.
Although the president finally obeyed, he refused to go to his office for 11 days in protest against what he saw as political interference.
The MPs also cast doubt on the president’s claims that he had created 1.6m jobs and blamed him for weakening the industrial and agricultural sectors and fuelling unemployment. They also said Islamic values were being undermined by the government’s failure to enforce Islamic dress and its promotion of Iranian nationalism at the expense of religious values.
But Mr Ahmadi-Nejad brushed aside the accusations, sounding confident and often making flippant remarks.
“You should not be so tough on girls and boys,” he said. “They are our children. Which one of us has not committed any sins? Who is dealing with your sins?”
As for his non-appearance at his office, the president denied challenging the supreme leader, saying: “Ahmadi-Nejad staying home and resting? Most people tell me I should rest one day. Work has not stopped for even a day in this government.”
Nonetheless, he did not explicitly express his full allegiance to Ayatollah Khamenei as his opponents had expected. And many parliamentarians were enraged at the tone of his remarks, calling them “illogical, illegal and evasive” and an insult to the legislature.
“Is this a place for joking?” one MP, Mohammad Reza Khabbaz, asked the assembly.
In theory, parliament could impeach the president but most observers believe this is unlikely, with the supreme leader content to keep him in place until his term expires in 2013. Under the constitution Mr Ahmadi-Nejad is not allowed to stand again.
More likely, say analysts, is that the president will try to manoeuvre an ally into a position to succeed him, for which he will need a solid power base in parliament.
“Ahmadi-Nejad will do his best to entice the new parliamentarians who are less critical of him by promising financial support for their constituencies,” said one opponent of the president.
“If he manages it, which seems likely, he will not be forced out of Iranian politics easily.”
By Najmeh Bozorgmehr in Tehran
14 March 2012
@ Financial Times