DUBAI: Iranian President-elect Hassan Rowhani has pledged to cooperate closely with parliament and to limit infighting between the legislative and executive branches, saying Iran’s problems could not otherwise be solved.
Rowhani, a relative moderate who won a landslide victory over more conservative rivals in a June 14 poll, needs the backing of lawmakers to pass a budget and to deliver on promises of an increase in the minimum wage and banking sector reforms.
“The future government will not think of confrontation with parliament, nor will it think of, God forbid, fooling parliament with inaccurate statistics,” Rowhani told deputies in a speech late on Sunday, according to the Mehr news agency.
“Certainly solving the country’s problems will not be possible without cooperation between parliament and the executive branch,” said Rowhani, who faces a tough challenge rebuilding an economy battered by international sanctions.
The second term of Iran’s outgoing president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, was marked by extensive feuding with parliament, which reached a peak in February when Ahmadinejad accused the family of speaker Ali Larijani of corruption.
Rowhani, a mid-ranking Shia cleric who has a close relationship with theocratic Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, takes office next month.
Parliament must also approve Rowhani’s nominations for cabinet positions and these have been the subject of widespread speculation in the Iranian media in recent weeks.
International sanctions levied over Iran’s disputed nuclear programme have placed enormous pressure on the country’s economy, contributing to inflation of above 30 percent, rising unemployment and a weakening of the Iranian rial.
REUTERS
