TEHRAN - President Hassan Rouhani underlined on Wednesday that no one is above the law and the people in Iran.

Addressing his cabinet of ministers, the president said, “No one is above the law and the people. We should not imagine that we are leading people’s thoughts. We should not imagine that if we were not, the people would be misled.”

He added, “The people understand well and choose well too.”

Also in late January, Rouhani, who has criticized the Guardian Council for banning certain hopefuls to run for parliament, highlighted the importance of the approaching elections, saying peoples’ trust in rulers is more important than the outcome of elections. 

“Undoubtedly, elections, especially the Islamic Consultative Assembly’s election is of great importance, but the people’s trust (in the rulers and the establishment), as well as social wealth, are more important than the elections,” Rouhani told a gathering of provincial and city governors ahead of the February 21 parliamentary elections. 

The parliamentary elections, the 11th of its kind since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, will be held in over 200 constituencies across the country’s 31 provinces on Feb. 21.

Elsewhere in his Wednesday remarks in the cabinet, Rouhani pointed to the February 11 rallies to mark the 41st anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution, saying the current year’s rallies should be held as great as previous years as “enemies have stood against our interests by their maximum power”.

He further highlighted the key role of moderate religious and political officials in managing the country in hard days.

The Iranian nation toppled the U.S-backed Pahlavi regime on February 11, 1979, ending the 2,500 years of monarchy in the country.

The revolution, spearheaded by the late Imam Khomeini, established a new political system based on Islamic values and democracy.

On Bahman 22nd, which mostly falls on February 11, Iranian people pour into the streets in their millions to commemorate the great victory of the Islamic Revolution. 

MJ/PA