Statements in Meeting with the President and Members of the Cabinet

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Thanks be to God, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master Muhammad and his pure family, especially the Awaited One on earth.

Welcome, Mr. President and esteemed gentlemen, dear brothers and sisters. We have benefited from your reports. I had no remarks if others were to report as well, but now that you have spoken, I will share a few sentences.

The Government Week is, in fact, a link between one phase of the government’s life and another; that is, during this week, you reflect on the past year and also look ahead to the coming year; you can compare, learn from experiences, and draw lessons. This week is adorned with the names of two great martyrs: Martyr Rajai and Martyr Bahonar. There is a point here [and that is] what symbol we have in mind from these two martyrs that we want our ministers and senior officials to guide towards that symbol? [What is that symbol?] Their function is not in front of our eyes; there was no opportunity; Martyr Rajai was president for about a month, and Martyr Bahonar was prime minister during the same period; Martyr Rajai was also prime minister for several months, under the difficult conditions of that day. Therefore, the function of these two great men is not the focus, and we have no sign or effect of their function. So what is the issue? The point of mentioning these two individuals is in their intention, in their direction. The direction of these two dear martyrs was revolutionary and divine. Those who knew these two closely will confirm our statement that these two sought what all martyrs and Mojahedin in the path of God seek; they were pursuing this; that is, their lives were perfectly aligned with their destinies; they sought divine satisfaction, just as all our martyrs and all Mojahedin who sincerely engage in jihad aim for divine satisfaction; divine satisfaction and working for the people, which also falls under divine satisfaction; that is, the Almighty God has asked us to work for the people.

Well, this is important; that is, the code name of our governments should be this: to gain divine satisfaction and work for the people; we should summarize the goal in these two sentences. If divine satisfaction becomes the goal of a person, it will affect all our activities, all our actions, and the nature of our functions. When you are at home thinking about the work that is your responsibility or the heavy ministry work, and you have to take it home at night and work on it, no one understands, no one praises you for this work, no one knows, but you do this work; for what? For divine satisfaction; this is correct; it affects our functions, it affects our appointments. There is a sentence in Sahifa Sajjadiyya regarding this issue of divine satisfaction; it states to the Almighty God, saying: "I prefer Your satisfaction over any other motivation; if this is the case, even my enemy will be assured of my justice and fairness, and my friend will despair of my inclination and the decline of my desires." This is very important. If divine satisfaction becomes my goal, my enemy is assured that I will not oppress him; he is the enemy, but he is confident that I will not oppress him; my friend is also assured that I will not grant him any preferential treatment due to friendship, without qualification. We are naturally like this in our appointments if we consider divine satisfaction; we are careful to appoint someone who is deserving, not someone who is a friend, who is close to us, just because of friendship, without qualification. This is the characteristic of divine satisfaction. The late Martyr Rajai and the late Martyr Bahonar were truly like this; that is, their goal was truly divine satisfaction. We have known them closely for years, we have seen their behavior. Government Week is adorned with their names. This has become the guideline and, so to speak, the banner on which the name of this government is written; you must keep this in mind.

Regarding the issues I will discuss with you today, I have considered two sections: one section is a brief opinion and judgment of mine about the government, and the other section is some reminders that I will share with friends so that they pay attention.

As for my judgment, I have supported all governments over these thirty-some years; I have supported all these various governments, with different orientations and capabilities; the reason is clear: the conditions of the country and the goals we have outlined for ourselves in the Islamic Republic necessitate that everyone assist the executive branch — which is in the middle of the field — to help; the leadership should help, the people should help, intellectuals should help, elites should help; the rule is this. All governments deserve this comprehensive support, and we have helped all governments. However, regarding this government, in addition to support, I want to commend it as well; that is, what we have observed in the performance of this government over the past two years is deserving of our appreciation and commendation. In some areas, the government has appeared strong and good, and these areas are significant; I will now briefly mention some. The reason I say these is that the government’s language in expressing what has been accomplished is unfortunately not eloquent; the good events that have occurred have not been reflected in the minds of the people to the extent that is deserved and rightful. I want to say a little so that perhaps it helps to make the truths and realities regarding the government more apparent to the general public and to those who have no opinion or bias. Now I will refer to several areas.

In the economic sector, good work has been done by the government, which has been partially explained by both the President and the First Vice President. What I want to emphasize is that a considerable number of macroeconomic indicators show growth, progress, and positive changes. Of course, there is some distance before macroeconomic issues reach the livelihood of the people and their lives; that is, time must pass. The nature of some governments is that they sacrifice tomorrow for today; this government has not done that; it has undertaken large and foundational works whose effects may not fully manifest today, but they will eventually appear. I will mention a few items, [but] the report I have received is much more than this; there are nearly fifty positive events that have occurred in the economic field in that report. Now I will mention a limited number of them.

Increased economic growth, especially in the industrial sector; this is important. Increased investment growth, which is one of our most important economic issues, and a fundamental problem in some past periods was the issue of investment, which had negative growth; in common terms, it is called "negative growth," while its name is not growth, it is regression. Decreased liquidity growth, which was also mentioned by the gentlemen. Decreased unemployment, decreased Gini coefficient, significant growth in exports of goods, strengthening the tax system, which has enabled the government’s tax revenues to cover a considerable portion of the government’s current budget. Significant growth in the production of petrochemical products, which is one of the important issues of the country. Valuable actions in the field of oil and gas, including the recent inauguration of the eleventh phase of South Pars by the President. The revival of closed or semi-closed workshops, which the number mentioned is high, several thousand; several thousand closed or semi-closed factories have been revived; this is very important. Important activities in the field of water supply or irrigation and drainage networks in various places, which were also mentioned in the gentlemen’s reports.

I mentioned that nearly fifty items of such actions have been reported to us — these are very valuable and important — but they are not seen. Firstly, because the information dissemination work in the government is unfortunately weak; that is, the fundamental work for information dissemination is not being done. It is not enough for someone to come on television and tell the people that these works have been done; information dissemination is an art, and an artistic work must be done so that it is done correctly. One reason is that, since there are currently livelihood problems among the people — there is inflation, especially in some food items there are significant price increases, or in housing there are significant price increases — and these are the daily issues of the people, they see these and naturally overlook the important and valuable economic works; that is, these become a dust that obscures the fundamental works; a serious and urgent thought must be given to this issue, God willing. Well, this is regarding the works that have been done in the economic sector.

In the management sector, very good works have also been done by the government, which, in my view, are no less valuable than the economic works and economic advancements. One of them is being present among the people and directly facing the problems of the people. The fact that you go among the people, hear from them, respond to them, and they present their problems, this is a very good work, this is very useful. It is useful from several aspects; one is that you gain firsthand information, and it has other benefits as well. Close, humble, and sincere communication with the people; this is very important. We have no right to interact with the people from a position of superiority and arrogance; we are nobody; whatever exists belongs to the people; if a dignity, job, or position has been given to us, first, it has been given by the people, and second, it has been given to serve the people. Simplicity and reduction of formalities in personal and governmental conduct of the government, especially of the President, is striking to me and is something important and noteworthy. The revolutionary positions taken by the government; the jihadist spirit that is shown in some of the works that were also mentioned in the gentlemen’s reports; the employment of youth in various management levels, which is very important, is necessary and, thanks be to God, has been done in this government. Therefore, there are also good, commendable, and gratifying works in the management sector.

In the foreign policy sector; the government’s activity in foreign policy is very good. The policy you have adopted, which is to connect with neighbors, is a very good policy, and this should be pursued. We should have no disputes with any of our neighbors; we should strive to turn any disputes into cooperation; this is a task that has been somewhat accomplished, and it should continue to be done. Or communication with all governments in the world that are willing to connect with us, with a limited exception that is now specified. Communication with different continents; South America, Africa, Asia, East Asia, everywhere. This policy of diverse and varied communication with different countries, with their political, climatic, economic, cultural, and other characteristics, is the right thing to do. Membership in two important international treaties in a short period was a very good success, which not only benefits the country but also indicates some truths and realities. Countries of the world are not enamored with anyone to say, "Sir, please join here;" they have a calculation that leads them to say this, they have a calculation that leads them to accept a government; this calculation is very important; it indicates that the country is in a position, at a level, that the signatories and founders of these international treaties are eager, willing, and sometimes insistent that our dear country be among them.

In the cultural sector, good works have been done, which of course should also increase in quality and quantity. And [also] in various sectors, the details of which you all know.

My recommendation is that whatever exists in the government’s functions that can make the people happy, you should be able to convey these to the people. The gap between realities and the people’s perception of realities is currently very large; that is, the perception of realities is really far from that reality; you should reduce this gap so that the people can find the realities more. This requires work; that is, it is not a simple, ordinary task; this work requires contemplation and expertise that must be done by experts.

As for the reminders. Well, we have repeatedly said that the main priority of the country is the economy and culture; these two are the main priorities. Regarding the economy, this year we proposed a slogan that had two parts: one is controlling inflation, and the other is production growth. Regarding controlling inflation, I said in my first speech of the year that controlling inflation is achieved through production growth; that is, the most important thing that can be done to control inflation is to increase the country’s production. So production has become the axis. If the axis is production and it must grow, we must see how we can grow production. There are two points here: one is that we support, and the second is that we remove the obstacles in the way. What does support mean? It means, first, legal support; regulations should be such that production becomes easier and more profitable for the producer. Then, financial support, to the extent that it is the responsibility of the governmental bodies; securing foreign and domestic resources to the extent that it is part of the duties. And also cultural support for domestic production. Cultural support for domestic production means that we should make the people understand that domestic products should be consumed; that is, where domestic products exist, the people should turn towards domestic products; this is the most important cultural support for production. Of course, complementing this support is the vigilance against deviation; we have had periods where foreign and domestic resources have been provided to some for production and have not been used for production! This is not a trivial matter; the amounts involved are very large; here, fraud has occurred; we must be vigilant that this event and similar events do not happen. There are those who know how to play well with economic issues; that is, one really looks and sees that someone [is there] who, from our senior official in this sector, has more knowledge and awareness of the intricacies; they know the intricacies, they know the escape routes, and they act and take large illegitimate profits; legitimate profit is not a problem, but large illegitimate profit [is a problem]. These must be monitored; that is, when we say production should be supported and assisted, complementing this is that we must be careful not to deviate from this side.

The next point is about the country’s trade. Trade should support production. Our foreign trade is not just for market regulation; one part is market regulation, and another part is increasing production. Trade should help production; that is, in the agreements and economic interactions we have with the world, what ultimately comes out of it should be that domestic products go abroad and foreign capital comes in; now, "foreign capital comes in" can sometimes be in the form of investment, sometimes in the form of capital goods that we need; there are many machines [that we need]. All countries are like this; that is, it is not that in various countries of the world, all their needs are produced domestically; they bring in some things from abroad. For example, we bring in capital goods from abroad and take domestic products abroad; if this happens, that is, if economic interaction reaches this result, naturally production will grow; that is, this is the most important help to production, and trade becomes a supporter of production.

Another point is that we should timely identify the internal needs of the country. Sometimes we do not identify the country’s needs in time, and when we get close to a crisis stage, we hastily turn to imports and bring in from here and there, and naturally, we encounter problems. The domestic producer can meet our internal needs in most of the country’s issues, just as you mentioned, this year we managed to buy over ten million tons of wheat [from within]; well, the country’s consumption is approximately in this range — now it cannot be said very precisely, but the country’s wheat consumption is approximately in this range — that is, we have no need for wheat imports, and we are self-sufficient; well, this is very good. Everything is like this; if support is given in agriculture, in industry, in mining, in various services, everything can be provided domestically; provided that needs are identified in a timely manner.

There is an important point, and that is that in the seventh program, many obligations have been placed on the government that must be planned, God willing, so that work can be done for each of these; however, you should consider several important points in this program and observe these points in all economic decisions you want to make and actions you want to take. Now, for example, consider the issue of justice and reducing class disparities; this is an important point. Whenever you want to make a decision regarding economic issues, look at how its impact on the issue of class disparity is, whether the impact is positive or negative; calculate this. Or, for example, consider market stability, reducing inflation, stabilizing the exchange rate, and increasing production; these are prominent points. All these points are also quantifiable; that is, they can be measured, they are not things that cannot be measured. In all decisions, see what effect this economic decision you want to make has on these indicators; based on the effect it has on the indicators, [see whether you should] decide or not decide. This is also important.

One last issue in this regard is the issue of the people’s livelihood. The issue of livelihood is very important. I mentioned that when problems arise regarding livelihood, such as the current housing inflation and rent inflation, which really frustrates some people, all the good works you do are overshadowed; that is, all the positive actions that are done with this effort remain out of sight due to problems in the people’s livelihood; it is truly a shame! Work on this. The main goal of the imposed sanctions is precisely the livelihood of the people; that is, they want to take the livelihood of the people hostage. Efforts must be made to neutralize the sanctions. Now, of course, work is being done, negotiations are taking place to lift the sanctions, which are reserved for their own place, and there are also correct actions, but alongside that, the parallel line should be to neutralize the sanctions. One of the most important indicators of neutralizing the sanctions is certainly to reduce inflation; that is, efforts should be made to reduce inflation growth. Now, the amount that has been said that [inflation] has gone from a certain percentage to a certain percentage is good, but it is not enough; that is, the continuation of double-digit inflation growth for several consecutive years is completely undesirable; you must work to bring this inflation down as much as possible. I have been informed that there are some actions that have a relatively quick impact on reducing inflation, including completing unfinished projects, these unfinished plans that exist, which are very numerous; if you bring these to completion, they will have a quick impact on reducing inflation, as experts have told us. Or the issue of the imbalance of banks that you mentioned, is among these. Addressing these brokerage and intermediary activities; fruit in the garden has a price due to the effort of the gardener, but when it comes to the consumer through a broker, sometimes its price increases tenfold or more. These must be addressed in a way that greatly helps reduce inflation and assist the people’s livelihood.

Regarding foreign interactions and international policies, I also have two or three recommendations, which the government is thankfully active in; that is, good works have been done that we have previously mentioned. The important point is that we have opportunities in our relations with different countries; we should recognize these opportunities and use them in a timely manner. Sometimes we have a relationship with a country, we can benefit from it, [but] negligence occurs. [Be careful] that this does not happen; that is, opportunities should be recognized and utilized. Secondly, the memorandums of understanding that are made, the cooperation documents that are signed, should not remain on paper. Now the government has long-term cooperation documents with some countries; well, where are they? What are the results? Let us not allow this memorandum and cooperation document to remain merely on paper; this is important.

Another point is that when we say "interaction with the world," some political elements in the country consider "the world" to be primarily a few Western countries, [they think] "the world" means this! If we had warm and cordial cooperation with them, we have interaction with the world; if our relationship with them diminishes a bit, it seems as if we have no interaction with the world. This is wrong; this view is a retrogressive view; this view is a hundred years old. Yes, a hundred years ago it was like this; there were a few European countries that were the key players in the world, and having relations with them meant having relations with the whole world. A hundred years have passed since that time; this retrogressive and outdated view must be abandoned. "Interaction with the world" means interaction with Africa, interaction with Latin America, interaction with Asia. Asia is a vast source of human and natural wealth, and Africa is the same. The Western countries have primarily become wealthy by exerting pressure on Africa and similar countries. In fact, Europe has gained its wealth in a sense by stealing the wealth of [African] countries and some Asian countries. We should not neglect these; interaction with them is necessary. Therefore, the criterion for international relations is national interests and national dignity. This is also important; national dignity is very important, and in these interactions, there should be no subjugation or domination; that is, we oppose both domination and subjugation.

I would like to mention a few more reminders. One reminder is to maintain this popular demeanor; this is a very valuable thing. The fact that you speak with the people in a friendly, private, and humble manner, visit them, sit on their carpets, is very good; do not lose this, this is a good opportunity.

Secondly: pursue dialogue with elites as much as you can; [this] is a valuable thing. The elites of the country are the owners of thought, the owners of plans, they provide good guidance, and they have good insights; definitely pursue communication with the elites and have various sectors follow up on this.

The next point: presence in universities is one of the necessary tasks; especially universities; whether among students or among professors, being present, listening to their words, and conveying necessary points to them. [They] are not aware of many things; yes, they are students, they are professors, they are intellectuals, they are aware, but they do not know many things. This "Progress Tour" that has started and they go to see things, is something interesting and new for all of them. Well, all this work has been done in the country, our student is not aware of it; when they see it, they are surprised; the professor is the same. I once said to organize a tourism tour for [visiting] the country’s defense capabilities; now I want to say to organize this tourism for all the advancements of the country so that the elites can go see and be informed up close. This also greatly helps in countering the enemy’s hostility. One of the points of the enemy’s hostility that they hope for is the universities; your presence in the university neutralizes this.

Another point and recommendation is the need to enhance the effectiveness of the government’s media activities, which I have previously mentioned. In my opinion, every action requires a promotional attachment; every important action you want to take should have a clear promotional attachment. For example, regarding the preferential currency that you eliminated — which was a necessary action — this should have been clearly explained to the people that the reason we are doing this is this, this, and this, and its benefits are this, [it prevents] these harms. Every action taken should have a specific promotional attachment.

Another recommendation is that there should be coherence in the statements, promises, and statistics provided by government officials; that is, it should not be the case that, for example, one agency provides a statistic, and then the next day another agency refutes that statistic or provides a contradictory statistic, or for example, one makes a promise, and the other says this promise is not feasible; ultimately, if it is feasible or not, it should be clarified in advance within the government so that we can see whether to make the promise or not. Collective wisdom should be utilized, and care should be taken in the work, contemplation should be done, and wisdom should be exercised.

The last point is the same as what the President also mentioned: do not pay attention to the sensationalism and side issues, do your work. Sometimes you have made a decision, it is a correct decision, some people do not like it, they create a fuss; now that there is also social media, thousands of texts are produced in social media against that action of yours; if your action is a well-considered and thought-out action, do not pay attention, carry out your work. Sometimes they want to impose an action on the government that you should do this; again, you see in social media, for example, several thousand writings, letters, texts are published to pressure you; these are pressure groups; do not pay attention to them. Carry out the work thoughtfully, do it with consideration, when you decide, "So when you have made a decision, rely upon God;" be firm in your steps. I reiterate the emphasis on follow-up; do not leave works unfinished. Sometimes a person starts a work with great motivation, but after a few steps, their motivation decreases; this is not right. Maintain your motivation until the work reaches its conclusion, and God willing, it will be completed.

We hope that God Almighty is pleased with you and grants you success, and that the remaining period of your responsibility is accompanied by multiplied successes, God willing, which will be accepted by the Lord and the satisfaction of the Awaited Imam (may our souls be sacrificed for him), and the pure soul of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) will be pleased with you, and God willing, the pure souls of the martyrs will be pleased and satisfied with you.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.