Leader: Elections Are a Matchless Opportunity

Date: 02 May 2021 - 21:52

News ID: ۸۹۸۵۳

TEHRAN (Dispatches) -- Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei on Sunday called for a massive participation of Iranians in the forthcoming presidential election, warning against efforts to dissuade people from participating in high numbers.
"When the people are present, no power can shake the country. So, everyone who participates in the elections is working for the fate of the country and its future,” the Leader said in a televised address to the nation.
"Elections are a matchless opportunity that nothing can replace in strengthening the foundations of the system.
Ayatollah Khamenei warned against efforts made to discourage people by casting doubts on various aspects of elections, including the governing bodies and especially the Constitutional Council.
The Leader noted that despite some efforts made in a number of past elections to influence the voting process and the poll results, none of those efforts were important enough to affect the final result of the polls.
Ayatollah Khamenei said those who want to run for the election must believe in the basic principles of the Islamic establishment and do not cast doubt on them.
Unfortunately, some remarks made by certain officials in the run-up to the presidential election reflected previous statements made by enemies of the Islamic Republic, especially those made to undermine Iran’s Quds Force and its former commander Lt. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the Leader said.
"Some of these remarks are repetition of the U.S. remarks. Suppose that the Americans have been angry with Iran’s influence for many years. They were angry with Martyr Soleimani for this reason and this is why they martyred him,” Ayatollah Khamenei said.
"We must not say something that would bring to mind the idea that we are repeating their remarks, both about the Quds Force and about Martyr Soleimani himself.”
Ayatollah Khamenei said, "A country’s plans include military, scientific, cultural and diplomatic plans, and their totality makes up a country’s policy. It’s meaningless for one sector to negate the other and this is a big error, which must not be committed by the officials of the Islamic Republic.”
The Leader said the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)’s Quds Force has been the main force preventing Iran’s diplomatic apparatus from following a passive diplomacy in the West Asia region.
"This force carries out the policy of the Islamic Republic. Western countries persistently want the foreign policy of Iran to come under their flag. They have been cherishing this for years. Iran was under the Western domination both in the later years of the Qajar dynasty and under the Pahlavi rule. The Revolution freed Iran from their dominion and now they are trying to restore that dominion. Therefore, when the Islamic Republic establishes ties with China, they become upset, when it establishes relations with Russia, they become upset,” the Leader said.
"I know many cases of high-ranking officials of neighboring countries seeking to visit Iran, which the Americans opposed. We cannot step back in the face of their demand. We must act forcefully.”
The Leader said nowhere in the world the foreign ministry sets a country’s foreign policy outlines, but there are higher authorities that
set the main lines of a country’s foreign policy and the foreign ministry just carries out those policies.
"We must not talk in a way as if we do not accept the country’s policies and in doing so, make our enemies happy,” Ayatollah Khamenei said.
Ayatollah Khamenei also advised hopefuls running for the election to avoid giving promises they cannot deliver.
At the beginning of his Sunday speech, Ayatollah Khamenei first elaborated on the spiritual status of Imam Ali (AS), the first infallible Shia Imam, whose martyrdom anniversary is just a few days away, noting that the most important characteristics of the Imam included strict justice, courage, wisdom, as well as taking care of the oppressed people who are usually wronged by the society.
The Leader noted that those who proclaim to be true followers of Imam Ali (AS) must get as close as possible to his spiritual characteristics, especially his zeal to administer justice.
Ayatollah Khamenei noted that Imam Ali (AS) was martyred while praying at mosque, noting that there have been many people in our time, in the Islamic Republic, who followed their Imam and sought martyrdom.
The Leader mentioned Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the former commander of the Quds Forces, as one of the true followers of Imam Ali (AS), saying that when the enemies threatened to kill him, he reacted by saying "they are threatening me with something that I am seeking so ardently.”
General Soleimani was martyred — along with Deputy Commander of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and a number of their comrades — when his vehicle was hit on January 3, 2020 by a drone strike ordered by former U.S. president Donald Trump.
The Leader also talked about the National Teachers’ Day, which marks the martyrdom anniversary of Ayatollah Morteza Motahhari, who was martyred by anti-Iran terrorist Mujahedin Khalq Organization (MKO) soon after the victory of the Islamic Revolution.
The Leader noted that Motahhari, as one of the main thinkers of the Islamic Revolution, spent his time on studying all schools of thought, and tried to give answers to questions posed by the youth, both at universities and the seminary of Qom.
Ayatollah Khamenei said the most important task of teachers is to transfer their trove of knowledge to the next generations and safeguard the thoughts and ideas of their young audience.
"Therefore, we can say that teachers are the officers of the country’s progressive forces,” the Leader said.
Ayatollah Khamenei noted that teachers are now playing a more prominent role, because there have been few junctures in history when "our young people have been exposed to such a relentless cultural invasion.”
The Leader emphasized that teachers, along with workers, enjoy a lofty and important status in the society, adding the people should recognize this.
"In addition to recognizing their lofty status, efforts must be made to solve the livelihood problems with which teachers are facing, especially under the conditions which the new coronavirus pandemic has created.”
Reflecting on the Workers’ Day, the Leader noted that workers enjoy a lofty status in Islam, which prompted Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to kiss their hand.
"One of the most important roles in an independent economy is played by workers... because an independent economy depends on domestic production, which in turn depends on workers,” Ayatollah Khamenei said.
The Leader noted that the Islamic Republic’s enemies did their best to pit workers against the Islamic establishment, but they never stopped backing the Islamic Republic.
The Leader added that one of the most important ways to support the country’s domestic production is to support the labor force.
"We must note that supporting workers is actually supporting the national wealth, because if workers are supported, they promote national wealth, which will make any country proud,” Ayatollah Khamenei said.
The Leader noted that special attention should be also paid not only to the livelihood and economic problems of workers but also to their professional training.
"The issue of job security is a form of labor support, meaning that workers should not be concerned that they would lose their job ... they should enjoy job security and know that their employment is guaranteed.”
Provision of housing for workers and establishing equitable relationship between the labor force, employers and government is another point on which the Leader laid special emphasis.
Ayatollah Khamenei noted that various administrations should take advantage of all available potentialities to create new jobs.
Ayatollah Khamenei also warned against efforts made to shut down Iranian factories, noting that those who shut down a factory for their own personal benefits, are knowingly or knowingly doing an act of treason against the country’s independence and production.
The Leader exhorted executive officials and relevant ministries to take necessary action to deal with those who want to close production units and factories under various pretexts.
Ayatollah Khamenei said the best way to thwart sanctions imposed on Iran by the Western countries, especially the United States, is to boost domestic production in true sense of the word, noting that this will first render sanctions inefficient and make the enemies remove the sanctions.