Jailed Tehran mayor bemoans effects of conviction
TEHRAN, June 8 (Reuters) - Tehran's former mayor, in jail on a graft
conviction, sent his successor a message on Tuesday bemoaning the effect
of the probe which led to his imprisonment.
In a letter read out for him at the inauguration of new mayor Morteza
Alviri, another liberal reformer, Gholamhossein Karbaschi wrote:
``You, better than anyone, can understand the depth of the adverse effects
of the unjust and destructive approach to the city government...
``The development sector in the city has suffered losses of around seven
trillion rials (more than $2 billion at the official rate).
``The most important issue before you is to implement the urban development
programmes...There are considerable numbers of projects for motorways,
bridges and parks and various complexes which have unfortunately been left
unfinished because of these problems.''
Karbaschi, a maverick reformer, has begun a two-year sentence for embezzlement
after being convicted in a case which pitted him and fellow allies of President
Mohammad Khatami against the conservative-led judiciary. Karbaschi denies
any wrong-doing, saying the charges were politically inspired.
A shrewd administrator, he is credited with rebuilding the capital from
the desolation caused by war and neglect in the years after the 1979 Islamic
revolution.
But many of his development projects were suspended after the municipality's
financial affairs came under judicial scrutiny and its income dropped dramatically.
The new mayor, appointed last week by the recently elected Tehran city
council, has said the city owes around $333 million, mainly to contractors.
Karbaschi urged Alviri to ``pay no attention to the baseless remarks
and devilish temptations which beset one from every direction when one
attempts great tasks....''
``If the Tehran municipality has had any success, it is due to the fact
that these temptations were not heeded,'' he said.
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