Majlis criticizes administration for delaying debate on five-year plan
Tehran Times Political Desk

TEHRAN - Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani has criticized President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s administration for failing to submit their draft of the Fifth Development Plan (2010-2015) on time.

During an open session of parliament on Tuesday, Larijani said that according to legal procedures, the administration should have submitted their draft of the Fifth Development Plan to the Majlis by June 21 so that the parliament could have approved it after three to four months of deliberations.

And according to a new parliamentary by-law, the administration is required to present the national budget plan for Iranian calendar year 1389 (begins March 21, 2010) to the Majlis on December 6; otherwise the administration is breaking the law, he noted.

“We insist that the administration present the budget plan to the Majlis on time,” he added.

The new parliamentary by-law provides a mechanism for dealing with violations of the law, he stated.

Larijani said if the administration violates the law, parliamentary committees can prepare a report and present it to the Majlis, and then, if necessary, the case will be referred to the Judiciary.

But in certain cases, the parliament should only notify the president about the violations and ask him to elaborate, he added.

Larijani said the administration has not followed legal procedures with regard to the Fifth Development Plan.

Given the fact that it will take parliament at least three months to approve the plan, it is not clear how the parliament can assess the next annual national budget plan, since it is connected to the fifth five-year plan, he stated.

He went on to say that the administration has violated the law in certain cases.

“We regard the violation of the law as harmful to the management of the country and will persist in correcting the violations,” he added.

The Majlis speaker also said that the administration has served the country well and these issues should not cast a shadow over this fact.

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