In a symbolic gesture on ‘National Clean Air Day’, President Hassan Rouhani went to work by metro. The act was aimed to encourage citizens to use public transport as a way to decrease air pollution, ISNA reported.
Rouhani who was accompanied by Masoumeh Ebtekar the head of the Department of Environment, said before becoming the chief executive he used public transport occasionally. The president used the opportunity to have a friendly chat with the people about their day-to-day concerns.
Highlighting the importance of clean air, Rouhani said ‘’ there are myriad environmental challenges and although much has been done to improve the situation, we still need every citizen to join hands to help us tackle the problem effectively.’’
Moments before joining the Supreme Environment Council meeting, Rouhani noted that his use of public transport was a symbolic act meant to encourage people in greater use of public transport. ‘’ I hope this day will mark a new beginning for the officials and people alike to collectively fight air pollution and achieve clean air,’’ he said.
On his metro commute, Rouhani also said it was a valuable opportunity for him to hear spontaneous comments from ordinary people. ‘’Some of their demands are worth a follow up,’’ the president said. ‘’Some had views on foreign policy and nuclear talks, some had complaints about the crowded metro cars, others had suggestion on the status of university applications and a lady had some thoughts about people’s public etiquette and how to improve it.’’
