TEHRAN – Iranian President Ayatollah Seyed Ebrahim Raisi has addressed the state of affairs in the country, saying the enemy’s strategy against Iran rests on creating despair and hopelessness among the Iranian people.

Underlining that the enemies have adopted a strategy of disappointing the people, the president said, “They are upset and angry that an atmosphere of hope has been created in the country and seek to create despair among the people by making unrealistic claims, so everyone must be vigilant of such attacks.”

Speaking at a cabinet session of Sunday, Ayatollah Raisi referred to various suspicions raised in the media, including the attention of some ministers to the appointment of their relatives, saying, “Ministers and executive officials must respond immediately to false news and claims and not allow negative mentality to prevail in the society.”

The president emphasized, “The purpose of creating doubts is to create despair and hopelessness among the people, and in this regard, unfortunately, some people unknowingly accompany the enemy's strategy,” according to a readout of the meeting published by the official website of the Iranian presidency.

Ayatollah Raisi added, “Officials, while being careful not to get involved into false trivia, should pay attention to public opinion and respond to suspicions in a documented and reasoned manner.”

He described discrimination in payment of salaries and various employment contracts in government organizations and departments unacceptable and stressed, “One of the important manifestations of justice in the 13th government is a fair payment system and all agencies should work to ensure non-discrimination.”

Referring to the importance of the Public Culture Council, Ayatollah Raisi called on the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance to remove obstacles to the council's activities.

After the cabinet's vote of confidence in Mohammad Mahdi Alaei as the Governor-General of Qazvin, Mojtaba Abdollahi as the Governor-General of Alborz and Seyyed Mahmoud Hosseinipour Nouri as the Governor-General of Mazandaran, the president said, “In all three provinces, there are many opportunities for employment and activating tourism economy and digital economy as well as a maritime economy on the shores of Mazandaran, and all capacities must be used to solve the problems of the people, especially to create jobs and eliminate unemployment.”

Pointing out that the 1401 budget has been predicted and planned for 8% economic growth, Ayatollah Raisi added, “The difference between this year's budget and previous years is that governors-general do not refer to the central government officials for budget and credit, and each province is given credit to play its part in order to achieve 8% growth.”

The president emphasized, “Economic growth will not happen without the presence of all institutions and the granting of shares to each of them, so accordingly, to create 8% growth of all institutions, provinces and governors-general must play a serious role.”

Emphasizing the need to use efficient and revolutionary human resources at different levels of management, Ayatollah Raisi said, “We all have a responsibility to meet the expectations of the people by working around the clock to address their concerns and gain public trust.”

On Saturday, the president held a meeting with the head of the Judiciary and the parliament in which he underlined the need to solve the problems of the people.

The weekly meeting of the heads of the three branches of the government was held this Saturday evening, hosted by Ayatollah Raisi and attended by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Judiciary Chief Hojjatoleslam val-Moslemin Mohseni Eje'i at the office of the president.

In the meeting, the most important issues of the country, especially economic issues and people's livelihood were discussed and exchanged.

The heads of the branches called the focus on improving the economic situation and solving the livelihood problems as the priorities of the meeting and stressed the need for more cooperation in this field.

In his recent visit to Semnan province, the president said he believes that problems can be solved. “I see a very bright future, and despite all the threats, we believe that problems can be overcome with effort and empathy,” the president said.

He noted, “Some seek their own benefits in serving the people, another one is humanistic service; and the third type is solving people's problems for God, which solves the problems of society and brings with it God's pleasure.”