Reformists Plan New Body to Streamline Activities

A plan is under consideration by reformists to overhaul their camp's policymaking process, a member of the Reformist Policymaking Council said.

"The new plan has been proposed by some reformist politicians and groups to facilitate better, more prudent and more productive decision-making," Ahmad Hakimipour told IRNA on Saturday. "It would cover a wider range of reformist groups and a broader geographic scope."

Under the proposed initiative, he said, the so-called "reformist parliament" would replace the Reformist Policymaking Council, headed by Mohammad Reza Aref, the top reformist vote getter in the 2016 parliamentary elections.

"As the discussions on the plan are not over yet, it cannot be said whether it would be implemented. Its strengths and weaknesses should be considered… It might be revised or rejected or replaced by another plan," Hakimipour said.

  Main Weakness

The Reformist Policymaking Council has been facing "serious" criticism over its performance, he said, singling out "lack of accountability" as among its main weaknesses.

In Iran's political landscape, politicians are usually divided into two main groupings, namely conservatives and reformists, with moderates close to President Hassan Rouhani, leaning to the latter.

The support by reformists has been instrumental in the moderate Rouhani's victories in the two last presidential polls.

They could also garner many seats in the latest parliamentary elections in 2016, although short of having an outright majority.

But reformists, who are barely represented in Rouhani's second-term Cabinet, have grown more critical of his performance in recent months, complaining the administration is not doing enough to fulfill Rouhani's electoral pledges. The government's poor handling of the country's economic problems sparked demonstrations in dozens of Iranian cities late last month, where the protest slogans also targeted the reformist camp.

The weeklong protests grew violent soon and led to sporadic clashes between the marchers and riot police that state media said claimed 25 lives.