A Stronger Expediency Council?

Rooz Online: a pro-reformist website

Sharg newspaper carried this headline: “The Expediency Council is responsible for supervising the implementation of the grand policies of the three branches of government.” This is the product of an interview Sharg reporter Akbar Montakhabi had with Mohsen Rezai from the Expediency Council. The relegation of some of the authority of the Leader to the Expediency Council has been the subject of recent talks as a solution to end the current crises and impasse in the political sphere. This council was created during the life of ayatollah Khomeini to resolve some of the serious political issues facing the country then, and Hashemi Rafsanjani was appointed to head it, a post that he still occupies. According to Rezai, the changes to the charter had been sent to Khamenei who has approved them.

Political observers view the announcement of this measure which comes on the same day that president Ahmadinejad participated in a meeting of the Expediency Council for the first time as an important even that may help reduce the current and growing competition and battles at the highest levels of the Iranian regime. Of the principal contenders in the current political struggle are the revolution’s first and second generation leaders. READ MORE

The first change that is noteworthy since the announcement is that newspapers the next day carried front page photos of Ahmadinejad and Rafsanjani talking together. One may view the new role for the Expediency Council to be the interpreter of the constitution, which in some countries monitors the work of the three branches of government. In such cases, each of the three branches is represented in the Court, which is also the case in the Expediency Council.

Mohsen Rezai also said that from now on the Secretary of the Council would from now on monitor the grand policies of the three branches of government of the regime. The Council would present its reports to the general assembly of the Council and finally to the Leader for his decision. While the news is new, Rafsanjani had in the past made references to the fact that a new charter had been sent to the leader. He had also said that the Council has the authority to monitor the grand policies of the regime.

Rezai reminded his audience that the monitoring of the grand policies was a prerogative of the Leader. He also said that eight years earlier the leader had in fact relegated this authority to the Expediency Council. Since then, there was a need to write the regulations for this at the Council. Differences between the three branches at the time, according to him, prevented the drafting of a mechanism to oversee the work of the powers. Today, however, the need is so great and many of the differences have been channelized.

Rezai goes on to explain that there are three areas that the Council would monitor: the first are the policies to implement the fourth development plan; the second are the general grand policies of the state; and, the third is the strategic document.

“We shall monitor the activities of the three branches and then report deviations from it to the leader”, Rezai explained adding that he prefers the word “deviate” to “violation”. “After the Leader’s views, the Council shall inform the heads of each of the three branches of government of the views of the leader,” he said.