Report by Press TV
 |
Controversy surrounds the removal of billboards of President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad from the streets of the Iranian capital of Tehran.
The country's oil ministry had during the past month installed billboards across
Tehran to celebrate ten years of Iranian achievements in the oil sector.
The billboards that had images of the Iranian president, however, were taken
down after two days with the related officials blaming each other for the
removal.
The municipality said the pictures lacked the required license from the culture
ministry and were thus removed by the concerned contractor.
Oil ministry officials claim, however, that the Iranian Ministry of Culture and
Islamic Guidance had officially authorized the pictures and that a top official
at the municipality had ordered the pictures to be taken off the streets.
"From a total of 70 pictures, four had contained images of the president,"
Seyyed Ziaeddin Noureddini, head of the ministry's Public Relations Department
said on Monday.
"Our question from the municipality is why these particular images have been
removed and the rest remain standing? Isn't the president the second top
official of this country?" he added.
A senior official at the municipality said his organization had no role in
taking down the pictures.
"No top municipality authority has been involved, the contractor realized that
the pictures were illegal and took them down. It's as simple as that,"
Hojatollah Molla-Salehi said on the issue.
When the contracting company was contacted, an official also denied the
allegations and refrained from identifying the "top authority" responsible for
the incident.
"Don't ask who did it. If I reveal any names both you and me will be in great
trouble," an official at the municipality told Iranian daily Iran on
condition of anonymity.
"I can only say that a high authority has been involved," the official said.
With only four months to the country's presidential elections candidates in Iran
are rallying for voter support.
Former president Mohammad Khatami and ex-Majlis speaker Mehdi Karroubi -- who
head of the Etemad-e Melli (National Confidence) party -- have formally
announced their bid to contest the presidency on the Reformist platform.
Incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is also expected to enter the
presidential race for re-election in the country's June 12 elections.
Among other candidates is Tehran's mayor, Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf, who is
contemplating on whether to run in the country's 10th presidential elections.
Qalibaf was a presidential candidate that ran on the Principlist platform in
2005 but his bid was ended by a run-off between the incumbent president and
former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. Qalibaf came fourth in the 2005
elections.
Shortly afterwards, the former police chief was appointed as the mayor of Tehran
-- a post which was once held by President Ahmadinejad.
... Payvand News - 03/04/09 ... --
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