Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said on Monday the Iranian nation proved the ’republican’ nature of the country through their 85-percent turnout in the presidential election.
Ayatollah Khamenei called for the true understanding of messages sent by the presence of 40 million people in the June 12 presidential vote and the election of the president with 25 million votes.
“If the intellectuals and political elites in the country were to truly understand those messages, a lot of problems and deadlocks will be resolved,“ said the Leader in a meeting with the members of the 9th and 10th Iranian government, Presstv reported.
Ayatollah Khamenei said the 85 percent turnout of people in the election ’hammered’ the enemies of the revolution.
“The nation and the Islamic Revolution have proven their republican nature [through the election],“ he said.
“The comments of presidential hopefuls on their obedience to Islam, the Revolution and [its late founder] Imam Khomeini’s path show that the nation is leaning toward [those concepts], so they (the defeated candidates) attempt to portray themselves as followers of Imam [Khomeini] and the Revolution.“
The leader also called on the new administration of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to “thoroughly observe the law“, adding that any breach of law by the administration would lead to “the defiance of law“ in the society.
Ayatollah Khamenei said the government should “pay attention to constructive criticisms“ levelled by its opponents.
“There is domestic criticism backed by foreign media with destructive intentions. However, there is benevolent criticism that may not come from supporters of the government but they come with the best of intentions,“ he said.
The Leader urged President Ahmadinejad and his Cabinet to pay attention to “the advice of religious authorities and scholars“ in fulfilling their duties.
“Prominent clerical figures in different parts of the country and religious schools are supporters of the Islamic establishment and aware of the government’s efforts in serving the country. Therefore, their advice is based on compassion and empathy and should be appreciated,“ he said.
Ayatollah Khamenei also recommended the president and his cabinet to welcome the criticisms of university elites, saying the move will help the executive body to be further strengthened in the face of problems.
The Leader also urged the government to avoid conceit that may lead to “several deviations and downfalls“.
Ayatollah Khamenei urged the new government to follow up the past administration’s priorities such as “justice, fighting corruption, supporting the weak people and leading simple lives“.
“Establishing justice would be achieved through the fair redistribution of wealth in the country,“ he said.
The Leader also said the newly-installed Ahmadinejad government should revamp Iran’s economy and reduce inflation.
“We should devise a plan to reduce the pressure of inflation on the people,“ he added.
Meanwhile, 222 MPs in a letter read out in an open Majlis session on Tuesday said the Leader’s invaluable directives in Monday’s Cabinet meeting serves as guidelines for the new government.
The signatories of the missive also praised Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani and members of Majlis Presiding Board for their prudent, fair and pertinent assessment of ministerial nominees and the process of giving their vote of confidence to most of them, Fars News Agency reported.
In the letter, the lawmakers urged President Ahmadinejad and his Cabinet members to welcome the opportunity and facilitate the advancement and prosperity of the nation by implementing the far-sighted views of the leader.
The signatories also said that the Majlis would continue to fully and cordially collaborate with the government.

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The UN-backed commission charged with investigating Afghanistan’s presidential election said on Tuesday it has found “clear and convincing evidence of fraud“ in the results and ordered a recount of ballots from questionable polling stations.
Widespread allegations of ballot-box stuffing and suspicious tallies are threatening the legitimacy of Afghanistan’s Aug. 20 vote as the country awaits final results. More than 720 major fraud charges have been lodged with the Electoral Complaints Commission, AP reported.
The commission’s announcement comes with results from nearly three-quarters of polling stations already released. Incumbent President Hamid Karzai stands just shy of the 50 percent of the vote he needs to avoid a runoff election with his main challenger Abdullah Abdullah.
The commission’s order to recount some results adds to the uncertainty surrounding the vote.
A credible election is seen as critical to western-backed efforts to stabilize Afghanistan and win public support for the fight against the Taliban insurgency.
The commission did not say how many polling stations would require recounts, but it noted that it had so far identified some with questionable results in Ghazni, Paktika and Kandahar provinces, and that it is launching investigations in other provinces.
Stations showing 100 percent turnout or with a presidential candidate receiving more than 95 percent of the vote will need to be audited and recounted, the commission said in a statement. Stations with fewer than 100 ballots will be exempt from the process.
The Afghan election commission, a separate body that runs the entire election process, has so far thrown out votes from 447 stations--about 200,000 ballots--because of fraud, officials said.
“The numbers were suspicious and the results did not match with the reconciliation form“ used to double-check results, said Daoud Ali Najafi, the chief electoral officer of the Afghan body, the Independent Election Commission.
“In some areas, the turnout was higher than the number of ballots we sent to the polling station,“ Najafi added.
He said the ballots have been sent to the UN-backed complaint commission, which will decide if any can eventually be included in the official count.
The top UN representative in Afghanistan, Kai Eide, called on Afghan election officials to exclude ballots from the vote count that have “evidence of irregularities“.

Iran has questioned the US double standards toward American and Iranian citizens, following Washington’s hue and cry over the arrest of three American citizens who illegally entered the country.
“The US officials and media are continually creating a ruckus over the detention of its citizens without mentioning that five Iranian diplomats were detained for more than two years after the American-occupying forces violated their diplomatic immunity and raided Iran’s diplomatic mission in the northern Iraqi town of Irbil,“ Presstv quoted Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hassan Qashqavi as saying on Tuesday.
Iran’s security officials have confirmed that the three Americans identified as Shane Bauer, 27, Sarah Shourd, 30, and Joshua Fattal, 27, had been arrested in the western Iranian city of Marivan on July 31 after they illegally entered the country.
“It is surprising that the US officials and media show no humane response toward Iranians arrested or abducted in the US and other countries for baseless reasons,“ he said.
On January 11, 2007, US forces broke into the Iranian Consulate in the northern Kurdish city of Irbil, seizing the consulate’s computers, documents and staff, including five diplomats. Two diplomats were later released.
The five remaining Iranians, including three diplomats--kept in Iraq under US custody without charges--were released and returned after two and a half years.
They were released on 12 July 2009 in line with the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) between the US and Iraq. Under the terms of the agreement, the US military had to deliver more than 1,500 prisoners, including the non-Iraqi nationals in its custody, to the Baghdad government.

Swiss Envoy Updated
Iran’s Foreign Ministry announced that it has updated the Swiss ambassador in Tehran about the detained American citizens.
Tehran’s diplomatic ties with Washington were severed in 1979 and the Foreign Interests Section of the Swiss Embassy in Iran has been acting as the US Interests Section in the Islamic Republic ever since.
On this regard, Swiss ambassador in Tehran, Livia Leu Agosti, met the Foreign Ministry’s director for American affairs, Alireza Salari, to pursue the case of the three detained Americans.
“Taking into consideration the sensitive timing and location of their arrests, the probable causes of their entryÉis being investigated by security organizations, which will take some time,“ Presstv quoted a press release issued by the Foreign Ministry, which quoted Salari as telling the envoy.
Oft-repeated claims of the US government over cases pertaining to Iranian-American citizens were also discussed in the meeting.
“The repetition of US claims in this regard amounts to interference in Iran’s internal affairs,“ Salari said. “This is a clear breach of the US’ obligations within the framework of the Algiers Accord.“
The accord prevents the White House from “any kind of overt or de facto interference in the internal affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran“.