Iranian lawmaker Shahriar Haydari
An Iranian lawmaker says high prices for food has nothing to do with the United States’ sanctions but are a result of incompetent managers in the country.
In an interview with ILNA published on Sunday, Shahriar Haydari, a member of the parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said economic problems and high inflation are not related to foreign countries, but are due to a lack of integrated management system.
He added the increase in the price of eggs, yogurt, buttermilk and meat has nothing to do with the United States and sanctions, noting that the current situation in the country and the effects of sanctions are two separate issues.
“To say that sanctions are ineffective in some respects may be wrong, but the current state of economic turmoil, high inflation, disorganized resource management indicates a management completely in disarray”, Haydari said.
Further criticizing the management of resources, he said, “One of the main problems of our country is the lack of resource management, not the lack of resources, because we have a lot of resources, but we do not have proper management”.
Food prices are rising in Iran with retailers saying supplies have decreased, while officials insist there is plenty of stored sugar, oil and other necessities.
Prices for most essential goods are nominally fixed by the government, but the private sector often disregards the guidelines based on supply and demand. Many complain to the media that merchants inflate prices perhaps with the help of government bureaucrats and politicians.