Recent months have seen a surge in public attention towards the issue of corruption and embezzlement among Iranian authorities, with a new focus on the construction or support of local mosques. State-controlled media outlets have reported on alleged acts of “special favoritism” by Tehran’s mayor Alireza Zakani and his associates within the framework of an initiative at the Tehran Municipality.
The news website “Eskan News” delved into this matter by publishing documents highlighting that a sum of 8 billion tomans had been allocated to a mosque primarily used by Mohammad-Amin Tovakolizadeh, the cultural deputy of the city council, and his associates, with 2 billion tomans of that amount being immediately disbursed.
According to these reports, the “Imam Hossein Mosque” has become a hub for recruiting dozens of state-affiliated thugs, many of whom have been hired by the municipality and the cultural deputy’s office without any prior experience. Remarkably, Tovakolizadeh, Zakani’s deputy, oversees all activities related to this mosque.
Alireza Rajabi, affiliated with Zakani’s office, endorsed the allocation of resources to the mosque by signing the document. Similarly, Mohsen Kabiri-Tameh, a board member, signed the multi-billion-toman agreement, with his brother serving in Tovakolizadeh’s office.
In a report titled “Who Were the Paradise Mosque Builders?” published on April 2, the state-run website Eko Iran reveals that throughout the years, various factions have perpetuated corruption and misappropriation of public funds.
The report states, “The allocation of funds for mosque construction and support in the Tehran Municipality and the allocation of funds to mosques in Tehran is a common feature of the presence of reformists and principalists on the city council, and there is no period in which this issue did not exist. However, when we look more closely at the budget lines… we see that in each period, the ruling political faction has tried to pay more attention to its allies.”
Watch and judge how the regime in #Iran justifies the systemic #corruption of its leaders pic.twitter.com/N2RAWUoz0k
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) January 12, 2024
Corruption within the Tehran Municipality has a long history, with scandals dating back to previous administrations. In one instance in June 2023, a city council member called for a report to be presented to the council regarding the discovery of a 20 trillion tomans corruption case within the municipality.
Moreover, amid ongoing embezzlements and financial corruption within the Iranian regime’s institutions, a Tehran city council member stated on December 5, 2023, that it is unclear where a sum of 17 trillion tomans from the municipality’s budget has been spent.
In a video released from the city council meeting, Ahmad Sadeghi, the head of the “Transparency and Smart City” committee, questioned the whereabouts of this money, stating, “Where is this money? How have houses that were not built been accounted for in the budget?”
