Iran’s Road Minister Survives No-Confidence Vote
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian lawmakers on Tuesday gave a vote of confidence to Minister of Road and Urban Development Abbas Akhondi, who had been impeached after failing to convince the lawmakers about his performance.
Akhondi appeared on Parliament floor on Tuesday to respond to the questions of parliament members attending the impeachment session.
At the end of the session, 72 MPs voted in favor of the plan to dismiss the minister, but 175 lawmakers opposed it and five others abstained from voting, meaning that the minister managed to receive a vote of confidence.
In May, 24 lawmakers signed and forwarded a motion to the Presiding Board of the Parliament to impeach the minister.
Akhondi had won the parliament’s vote of confidence in summer 2013 with 159 votes to 107.
Under the Iranian Constitution, lawmakers can impeach an individual minister when they deem it necessary. An impeachment motion can be submitted when it has at least ten signatures.
