Iran's parliament votes to keep economy minister
Iran's parliament yesterday voted against removing the economy minister of hardline President Mahoud Ahmadinejad from office over the country's biggest financial scandal.
Parliamentarians who wanted to remove Shamseddin Hosseini lambasted him for mismanagement, including laxity in monitoring the banking sector.
"141 of the 244 parliamentarians present voted against unseating the minister," said parliament speaker Ali Larijani, a political rival to Ahmadinejad. A simple majority in the 290-seat assembly is enough to remove a minister from office.
The $2.6 billion banking scandal has taken on political dimensions because some hardliners linked the main suspect in the fraud to a so-called "deviant current" of advisers, allegedly led by Ahmadinejad's chief of staff and closest ally.
Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie is accused by many Shi'ite clerics and politicians of trying to undermine the central role of the clergy in politics by emphasizing the nationalist strain of Iranian history and culture.
The conservative-dominated parliament has given Ahmadinejad a hard time since his re-election in 2009 by rejecting many of his nominees for key ministries and also by obstructing the government's proposed bills, including a cash subsidy plan on fuel and energy. The bill was passed and implemented in 2010.
Larijani called on lawmakers to give Hosseini another chance after he repeatedly apologized for his shortcomings during a speech defending his actions.
The power struggle between the president and ruling hierarchy followed the 2009 election that the opposition says was rigged to secure Ahmadinejad's victory. Officials deny this.
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