TEHRAN – President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has appointed caretaker welfare and industries ministers.

Ahmadinejad on Sunday issued separate decrees announcing the appointment of Commerce Minister Mahdi Ghazanfari and Labor Minister Abdolreza Sheikholeslam as caretaker ministers of industries and mining, and welfare and social security respectively.
The president has decided to appoint caretaker ministers while the Majlis had previously written to all ministers, saying they are prohibited from interfering in the affairs of other ministries.
The move came one day after the president dismissed Oil Minster Masoud Mirkazemi, Industries and Mining Minister Ali Akbar Mehrabian, and Welfare Minister Sadeq Mahsouli apparently to pave the way for the merger of ministries.
A number of lawmakers have criticized the president’s decision, saying the simultaneous removal of three ministers in the current situation is not in national best interests and may suggest the country is unstable.
On May 9, the cabinet approved the merger of eight ministries into four ministries. The cabinet’s ratification envisages the merger of the Transport Ministry with the Housing Ministry, Industries and Mining Ministry with the Commerce Ministry, the Oil Ministry with the Energy Ministry, and the Welfare and Social Security Ministry with the Labor Ministry.
The government says it has planned the merger of ministries in line with the policy of downsizing the government stipulated in the Fifth Five-Year Development Plan (2010-2015).
According to the development plan, the government is obliged to decrease the number of ministries from 21 to 17 to improve the efficiency of the government.
The parliament and the Guardian Council have announced that the merger of ministries requires the parliament’s approval.
Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani said on Saturday that he had met with President Ahmadinejad, emphasizing the meeting was fruitful and the issue of the merger of the ministries was resolved.