Subscribe to RSS4th of November Will Be An Unforgettable Day For Ahmadinejad
By: Meir Javedanfar
03/11/2008
Tuesday 4th of November will be remembered as a very important day in American politics.
By the look of things, it will also be an important day for Iranian politics, for a very different reason.
Dr Ali Kordan, who is the Minister of Interior will be brought before the Majles for a motion of no confidence.
The Majles members embarked on this initiative, because it was discovered that Ali Kordan lied about his honorary PhD, which he said he had received from Oxford. After some investigative work by the Tehran based Alef News, it was discovered that his certificate was false. It even contained ridiculous spelling mistakes. Kordan first denied it and insisted that he is a real PhD. To contain the damage caused, he blocked Alef News’s website, so that the news doesn’t spread. It was too late.
When Oxford University denied having knowledge about him or his PhD, Kordan then changed his story, and said he was “duped”. This infuriated many members of the Majles, and the Iranian public.
As soon as some members of the Majles started the process of bringing Kordan for a motion of no confidence, they were bombarded with phone calls, by persons who tried to change their mind.
Things got even more interesting when some Majles members were offered 5 million Toman, (equivalent to appx $5000) for their local “mosque” (politically correct way of saying your own private bank account), on the condition that they withdrew their signature. To their credit, the signatories refused. Therefore on Tuesday 4th of November Kordan will stand before the parliament.
Ahmadinejad championed the anti-corruption drive in Iran. However, instead of sacking Kordan, he is standing fully by his side. So much so that he has refused to go to the Majles on that day, because he is against the proceedings.
When it comes to Ahmadinejad’s standing, it will be irrelevant if Kordan stays or goes. His public support for Kordan has already damaged his name, even with the Supreme Leader. Judging by a recent report in the Keyhan newspaper, whose editor Shariatmadar is close to the Supeme Leader, Khamenei is not pleased by the fact that Ahmadineajd has publicly declared that the Supreme Leader had fully backed Kordan. Even Khamenei is distancing himself from the Kordan affair. President Ahmadinejad would have been well advised to do the same.
The question on everyone’s lips will be: will this affair damage Ahmadinejad’s chances of being reelected? I would say that despite the damage, this affair is probably not a mortal blow. Where Ahmadinejad will feel the greatest loss will be amongst his own conservative supporters, who will now be even more divided.
Tuesday 4th of November will be an unforgettable day for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He will fear Kordan being removed and Barack Obama being elected as US president. A credible US president who wants to talk to Iran, instead of singing songs about bombing it, is not in the interest of Iranian conservatives. Calling the US a warmonger is one of the few battle cries they have left.
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