A General Who Doesn’t Know Politics
A General Who Doesn’t Know Politics: Qalibaf is categorized among Iran’s development-oriented managers. Whether during his time as the police chief or as the mayor of the capital, the decisions he made contributed to the advancement of the city and the police force. Introducing Mercedes vehicles and refurbishing police cars or launching the 110 hotline or building new highways and buildings in Tehran reflected Qalibaf’s developmental outlook.
However, the Speaker of the Eleventh Parliament is a poor player in the world of politics who does not know politics at all. Unlike all his prominent rivals, Qalibaf could not establish a political movement under his name and in each election, he shifted towards a political discourse based on the situation. He had switched sides so many times that after the 2009 elections and the subsequent protests, some reformist figures thought Qalibaf could be introduced as the representative of this movement in a competition without the presence of reformists.
If you are a political researcher and examine the elections in which Qalibaf has participated, you cannot arrive at a consistent Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf. In one election, he is a commander, in another a pilot, and elsewhere he plays the role of a doctor. Sometimes he makes such harsh statements that you think he represents the Stability Front in Iran’s political sphere, and at other times he speaks as if he is a legacy of Hashemi Rafsanjani.
Unlike his rivals, when he entered the election arena, he had significant media outlets like Hamshahri and many subsidiary sites at his disposal. However, due to his lack of mastery in politics and absence of seasoned advisors, he made no use of this media arm, effectively making no difference between him and Mostafa Hashemi Taba, who suddenly became a presidential candidate.
Perhaps it could be said that the most significant mistake of the former commander and current Speaker of the Parliament was seeing his fortune in the election box. Maybe if he had pursued appointed positions and not sought votes, he wouldn’t carry the label of a loser today. The twelfth parliamentary elections and Qalibaf’s fourth-place ranking, even in the weakest election of all time, again showed that he does not know politics and handed over the field with strange mistakes to Rasai and Sabati.
The writer, however, believes that he can still be the Speaker of the Parliament, and Qalibaf’s chance to sit on the green chair of the parliamentary presidency is still higher than others like Morteza Agha Tehrani. But now he must open his arms to the Stability Front and grant them concessions. Qalibaf of the Twelfth Parliament is much weaker than Qalibaf of the Eleventh Parliament. Now everyone knows how to play with this politically inexperienced commander.
Qalibaf always dreamed of the presidency. At one time, he thought he could find a path from Behesht Street in Tehran to Pasteur, which didn’t happen, and then he tried the path to Baharestan, which also turned out to be a dead end. It seems he should say goodbye to the dream of becoming president forever, and history will only remember him as one of the heads of the legislative branch. Perhaps the votes in the Parliament will turn in such a way that he, like Haddad Adel, will carry the title of a one-term president. Until that day, we must wait and see.