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Before President Ahmadinejad appeared at the 9 o’clock news two nights ago, when he ‎talked about the current economic and foreign policy issues, Ghodratolah Alikhani, a ‎Majlis member told Rooz that the president talks and promises much while the nations ‎problems persist. Here are excerpts of the exclusive interview.‎

Rooz (R): In your presentation to the Majlis, you have criticized the performance of the ‎administration on such issues as inflation and its impact. While our officials now have ‎plenty of funds at their disposal, why do you think the country’s economy is actually ‎getting worse to the point that even conservative newspapers and those supporting the ‎president are joining the ranks of critics.‎

Ghodratolah Alikhani (GA): Unfortunately despite the large oil revenues – unprecedented ‎in the country - the administration lacks proper planning, and so the public suffers. ‎Currently some 9 to 11 million of our compatriots live under the line of poverty. This is ‎taking place while the administration has had revenues of over 150 billion Dollars from ‎oil sales. Instead of addressing these serious needs of the under privileged, the ‎government continues to present slogans and empty promises. These in turn too have ‎their own consequences for the country.‎

R: What are the impacts of these policies?‎

GA: As we clerics say, things find their own consequences.‎

R: Where do you think these things will take us?‎

GA: I think that housing and issues relating to daily existence will get worse in the future. ‎In my talk at the Majlis I said that the administration should attend to these serious issues ‎instead of making inflammatory messages and slogans. People are suffering from the ‎issues arising out of high housing prices and high prices.‎

R: But it is the Majlis that approves the budgets and supervises on how the money that ‎has been allocated is spent.‎

GA: During the administration of Mr. Ahmadinejad, the Majlis does not exercise ‎monitoring powers over many things that the government does, and so the ‎administration’s hands are free to do what it wishes. Unfortunately the Majlis is weak in ‎its supervision. The president can make any promises that he wishes on his trips to the ‎provinces, as has been the case. Yes, the law says that the Majlis must supervise and ‎monitor expenses of the executive branch, but this has not been happening during Mr. ‎Ahmadinejad’s administration.‎

R: Mr. Ahmadinejad and the media that supports him portray the president’s trip to the ‎provinces as a key event of his administration. How successful have these trips been in ‎resolving the public’s problems?‎

GA: We welcome the principle of any official traveling to the provinces. The problem is ‎that none of the promises that have been made during these trips have materialized. Some ‎people may have benefited from the marriage loans and housing loans, but all youth have ‎rights and expectations.‎

R: How can people make their demands known, especially those relating to their ‎economic conditions?‎

GA: We have elections, which must reflect this. People can decide for themselves. It is ‎elections that determine the fate.‎

R: Has inflation become a more serious problem in your constituency. You seem to have ‎given it low reference in your Majlis talk.‎

GA: The issue is not higher prices for my constituents. The issue is a national one, one ‎belong to everybody. Higher prices are not something one can isolate to a specific ‎geographic region. Making ends meet is a top priority and must be addressed.‎

R: You have said that the president should not talk of the economic mafia and other ‎hidden hands that controls many things. What do you think the president must talk about ‎when mentioning economic issues?‎

GA: He present solutions and convince the public. The calls of the public must take ‎precedence. We would like to know whether he can convince the public or not. I do not ‎think he can, because so far he has made plenty of speeches and promises, but the ‎problems have not been solved.‎

It should be noted that in his Majlis talk, Alikhani addressed Ahmadinejad and said: ‎‎“You have acquired some 150 billion Dollars during the past 2.5 years from oil sales ‎which is more than all the income that Rafsanjani’s 2 administrations had, or about the ‎same as that of the 8-year Khatami years. So the public had a right to see some of this ‎income come directly to their table, and see some of them go to large national projects. ‎This is what they had seen during the former administrations. Now there are no such ‎projects in the making. At the same time, the oil money is not impacting the prices of ‎people’s daily consumer needs, such as meat, eggs, etc. The way things are going, some ‎may not see fresh eggs on their tables, which may turn into a dream for the most ‎poverished, yet respected sectors of the population.”‎