One Minister Dismissed, another Resigned

The publication of different news versions regarding the removal of cabinet ministers in Iran has put the ninth administration in a major ‘crisis of legitimacy’ in its final days in office.
On Sunday June 26th, official news agencies announced the dismissal of Mohammad Hossein Saffar Herandi, the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance. Following that, the same news agencies announced the removal of the ministers of Intelligence, Health, labor, and, Social Affairs.
Writing on these developments, hardline pro-administration Keyhan newspaper wrote, “In an unexpected move, Ahmadinejad removed Minister of Intelligence Mohsen Ejhei”, adding, “Latest news indicate that Hossein Saffar Herandi, the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance too was removed yesterday. And since the removal of these two ministers would create a problem for the administration based on article 136 of the Constitution, the dismissal of Herandi was rescinded after the president was informed of the legality of his decision and official sources talked about the removal of the Minister of Intelligence.” Article 136 of the Constitution provides that any time 50 percent of the cabinet is changed, the whole cabinet must get a vote of confidence from the Majlis.
In response to the speculations that were born over the government’s standing, the official website of the administration argued that the cabinet had not yet fallen to less than 50 percent membership, writing, “Despite news reports that the ministers of Islamic Guidance, Health, and Labor had been removed, the president only confirmed the removal of the minister of intelligence.”
Just hours after this, the minister of guidance in a way challenged the dismissal and subsequent retrieval and announced through a meaningful resignation letter, published in the media, that, “Following your verbal order of my dismissal and the assignment of a caretaker for the ministry which was published on the government’s website, along others, I noticed that concern about the quorum of the cabinet led to the withdrawal of the dismissal order.” He continued, “I have decided to take my dismissal seriously and myself resign any responsibility at the ministry of culture and Islamic guidance, and shall not appear at the ministry tomorrow. I am prepared to let my name appear on the cabinet roster during the last eight days of the administration (so that the necessary quorum exists for the government).”
Prior to this, ISNA student news agency had not only reported the dismissal of Mohammad Hossein Saffar Herandi but even announced the temporary caretaker of the ministry appointed by the president.  According to ISNA, after removing Herandi, Ahmadinejad had appointed Mohammad Ali Khajepiri, an advisor at the ministry to head the agency until a replacement for Herandi was appointed.

The Government is Unlawful
Following the news of the removal of four cabinet ministers, the head of Majlis’ investigative center Ahmad Tavakoli said, “The minister who had been removed, were among the 5 or 6 ministers who had opposed the appointment of first vice-president Mashaie and had engaged in written communications regarding this. There were certainly more individuals in the administration who opposed the appointment of Mr. Mashaie.”
Tavakoli added, “My advice to the president is to withhold his decision [regarding the dismissals] so that the government does not loose its confidence in the Majlis.” He added that the issue with the dismissals of Messer Herandi and Ejhei was that they related to article 136 of the Constitution which provides that whenever half of the cabinet membership is changed, a vote of confidence by the Majlis is required.
In another response to the presidential firings, the deputy Majlis Speaker announced that with the definite removal of two cabinet ministers, “cabinet sessions of the ninth administration will be illegal.” Mohammad Reza Bahonar further said, “Even though the dismissal of the two cabinet ministers has not been confirmed, even with the existing changes in the cabinet, its sessions would be illegal without a vote of confidence from the Majlis.”
It should be mentioned that since it began its official duties, half the members of the ninth cabinet of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s administration have been changed and so the removal of just one more minister is sufficient to invoke the provisions of article 136 of the constitution.
In the meantime, the president appointed the dismissed minister of interior Ali Kordan as the new special inspector for the president. Kordan’s removal following the censure by the Majlis was done because of the forged educational documents that he had presented in his resume, while Majlis deputies had raised other issues with him during hearings held over his appointment which included sexual scandals that had been raised by conservative Majlis deputies.