Iranian institutions locking horns as pandemic spreads

Menna Abdelrazik

Iranian state institutions keep fiddling, despite the growing number of coronavirus infections and deteriorating economic conditions in their country.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, the Revolutionary Guard Corpse, Reformists, the judiciary and conservatives are all locking horns.

Lost funds

On April 14, the Financial Supervisory Authority revealed that $4.8 billion had disappeared, even as Rouhani was entrusted with this money as part of a total of $31 billion.

These funds would have been used in the purchase of food and basic needs for Iranian citizens.

The government had also specified huge amounts of money for the purchase of basic commodities through the nation’s traders. However, the traders took the money, even without handing over the goods to the government. The same traders reportedly bought other goods, including car spare parts, which violates their original contracts with the government.

On April 17, Rouhani criticized the Financial Supervisory Authority for failing to investigate the financial dealings of the military and the judiciary.

Coronavirus crisis

The judiciary threw its full weight behind the Revolutionary Guard Corpse, especially after the coronavirus crisis emerged.

However, the judiciary criticized Rouhani for failing to take speedy measures to contain the virus.

Meanwhile, the coronavirus helped the Revolutionary Guard Corpse tighten its grip on Iran, according to the Washington Institute.

This is especially true after Iranian authorities entrusted the corpse with executing the national quarantine measures, it added in a report it released in April.

It said this helped the Revolutionary Guard Corpse extend its control to the nation’s health facilities.