Rewritten Title: Judiciary Launches Major Probe into 500 Firms Over Unreturned $52 Billion in Export Revenues
Article:
A Call for Economic Accountability
In a significant address to the Iranian Parliament, Hossein Samsami, a member of the Economic Commission, highlighted critical challenges in the nation’s economic policies and announced a major judicial initiative to reclaim national assets. The core of the issue revolves around substantial export revenues that have not been repatriated, a matter now receiving top-level attention.
Repetitive Policies and Economic Pressure
MP Samsami articulated a central concern regarding economic strategy, stating that the nation continues to repeat policy errors despite witnessing their damaging consequences. He directly linked current price increases and living cost pressures to the repetition of what he termed “incorrect economic policies.” He drew a parallel to a previous policy shift concerning a preferential currency rate, which he said led to inflation and social unrest, warning that similar reasoning is now being applied under a new framework.
A New Proposal and Its Potential Pitfalls
The parliamentarian raised an alarm about a new draft policy under government review. While the proposal aims to stabilize prices for essential goods through a subsidy card system, Samsami warned that its implementation could backfire. He argued that it would likely lead to widespread price hikes across all sectors, including housing and clothing, and would ultimately fuel further currency depreciation. He projected that continuing on this path would necessitate ever-higher preferential rates in the future, each removal of which would inflict a heavy inflationary shock on the country’s economy.
A Path Forward: Supervision Over Price Hikes
Emphasizing a solution, Samsami insisted that the government must move away from reliance on pricing tools and instead employ effective non-price and supervisory policies. He stated that while increasing prices is the simplest administrative action, it is the most costly for the people and has historically resulted in rent-seeking, corruption, and increased pressure on lower-income classes. He called for precise supervision and the timely allocation of currency to production institutions to prevent new inflation, asserting that the country’s currency resources are available but require more effective management.
The Judiciary Steps In: Reclaiming National Resources
The most decisive part of the address concerned the fate of export revenues. MP Samsami revealed that, based on precise information, over $95 billion in currency from exports has not been returned to the country since 2018. He stated that this has effectively led to a multi-trillion Toman loss for the people.
In a significant development, he announced that the Parliament has formally requested the Head of the Judiciary to investigate the matter. A list of 500 companies alleged to have failed to return a combined total of over $52 billion in export currency has been submitted for judicial review. Samsami named several major companies cited in the probe, including Arya Marine Shipping Company, Persian Kish Goods Supply Company, National Iranian Copper Industries Company, and Star Oil Company of the Persian Gulf, with specific amounts each is alleged to have withheld.
This judicial pursuit marks a concerted effort by the government to strengthen economic oversight and ensure that national resources are properly managed and returned for the benefit of the country’s economic stability.