Why does the ruling power insist on following a mistaken path?

Shahabeddin Haeri Shirazi

The ruling power knows that if public participation becomes meaningful and drops below 30 percent, it will have significant and serious implications for it on the international stage.

The ruling power understands that the appropriation of elected positions by the leadership, and delegating these powers to appointed individuals and councils under its command, has rendered both the elite and the public indifferent to elections and participation.

Boycotting elections is not overthrowing; rather, it is the suspension of parliamentary powers that constitutes overthrow.

The ruling power is aware that this method of governance has led to inefficiency in all areas of the country.

They know all of this—perhaps even better than we do—but they pursue goals other than development, which is why they insist on continuing down this mistaken path. The issues facing the Iranian nation today are distinct from those of the ruling power, which is why they are adamantly trying to reduce the genuine and impactful presence of the people.

The ruling power does not want everything it has proudly attributed to the people to be exposed as causes of destruction and backwardness in the near future. They do not want their era of governance to be seen as a time of regression and incredible mistakes.

They know that if real representatives of the people emerge, this will happen. The country is on the brink of destruction because the ruling power wants to maintain a good name after its departure.

This is a profound injustice to the nation: to avoid questioning hollow slogans that have stalled the country for 45 years, to avoid apologizing or correcting the wrong path, and to resign themselves to the destruction of people’s lives under the wheels of inflation resulting from sanctions and empty slogans.