Eighteen MPs from Khuzestan Province have tendered their resignation from Parliament to protest the proposed government budget for the coming year.
The Mehr News Agency reports that Nasser Salehinasab, one of the departing MPs, announced the news in Parliament today.
Abdollah Tamyomi, the deputy head of the Khuzestan MPs Society, told Parliament: “According to earlier agreements, the administration has promised to allot a special line of credit to address problems in the many underprivileged cities of Khuzestan, but the proposed budget failed to address this matter.”
He added: “Meanwhile, the administration and the president have taken unacceptable steps toward transferring water from Karoon River sources to other parts of the country, which is leading to further destruction of agriculture in Khuzestan.”
He added that the project to redirect water from these sources is “treason against national interests and the people of Khuzestan Province” and he announced that the government had promised to stop the projects.
Tamayomi said the MPs are resigning in unison to make the point that they are united in their demands for Khuzestan.
