Interview at the Conclusion of the Visit to Bushehr Province

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

I take this opportunity to once again extend my greetings and express my respect to the dear brothers and sisters residing in this province. Although I had the privilege of meeting the dear people of Bushehr city—both in a public gathering and face-to-face—I did not have the chance to visit the other cities of the province; however, esteemed gentlemen and dear brothers visited almost all the cities of the province. This morning, five delegations went across the province and met with the people of various cities.

As I observed the dear people of this province, I can say that they are very genuine, religious, and revolutionary people. The people here generally possess a spirit of dignity and nobility; they are people who are very fond of the officials and have a deep love for the Islamic Republic. Looking at the past of this province, we see the same characteristics. The people of this province have fought against the British and resisted their influence. As I mentioned in my public address to the people of Bushehr, the late Rais Ali Delvari and a group of fighters of that time—who became famous, although he was not alone; others from the notable figures of this province and also the general public cooperated with him—fought against the British and resisted the occupation. The people of this province are very noble people; however, unfortunately, they are also afflicted by deprivation.

The valuable news given by our dear governor—who is indeed an active, energetic, and deserving governor—was indicative of the useful and serious work that the Islamic Republic and the servants of the system have been able to accomplish for these people. Nevertheless, despite all the work that has been done, deprivation still exists at the provincial level. Perhaps several times the work that has been done so far needs to be done so that, God willing, this province can shed the label of 'deprived' and discard it.

In response to the question you raised about what plans we have in mind, I must say that during this trip, experts on these issues accompanied us, and we benefited from their opinions, and it was decided that work would be done. Both the governor himself is aware of the issues here, and from Tehran, Mr. Mirzadeh, the honorable Vice President, has come—who is indeed a very active, devoted, and efficient figure in these executive tasks across the country and had suggestions and proposals, and some matters were undertaken by the government, which are very valuable and will be mentioned—and Mr. Basharti, who is the head of the Office of Deprived Areas in the government, is accompanying us on this trip; he is also, thanks be to God, one of those very compassionate, sincere, and hardworking individuals.

In summary, what has been decided to be done includes both infrastructure projects, which are important tasks in the program and, God willing, will be carried out—water supply, agricultural services, road construction, electrification, hospitals and medical issues, urban and rural development; perhaps about two hundred projects—and also issues related to education, where, God willing, a number of elementary and high schools will be built; as well as the creation of cultural and sports facilities across the province; and also Bushehr University, which is one of those very fundamental projects for this province, and indeed for the country. Of course, university services and actions have been carried out in this province; that is, the University of Medical Sciences is here, the Faculty of Fisheries is supposed to be established, God willing—which are part of the government's plans—Payam Noor University is here, the Faculty of Engineering is here; however, the Bushehr University complex, which will be the mother institution for all these and the center of higher education in this province, is among the projects that are planned to be carried out, God willing.

Overall, the projects that are planned to be carried out seem to be very good projects, and—as written here—the cost of these projects will be about one billion three hundred and sixty-nine million tomans, which, God willing, all of these will be carried out. The cost of most of these projects will be paid in the remainder of this year; preliminary work will begin, and some will start around the year 71. The Office of Deprived Areas has undertaken two hundred and four million tomans of this amount; from the government, Mr. Mirzadeh has undertaken four hundred and thirty-five million tomans; seven hundred and thirty million tomans are other amounts that have been committed to be allocated to this province and these tasks. In addition to all these, it has been decided that a number of rural industrial workshops will be established and electrification services will be carried out, which are also of importance.

We believe that if this province can absorb this amount—which is a significant amount—God willing, it will be a step towards alleviating deprivation; of course, this also requires the efforts of the governor and the cooperation of all agencies. This amount should be absorbed in a not too long period—that is, within this year and the next year, God willing; meaning that the work should begin. Of course, some of these tasks require time; that is, they take more than one or two years—like the university itself, which apparently requires more than one or two years—but if all these projects and tasks begin, God willing, the province will experience movement and change.

This water supply project that has reached fruition is a very magnificent thing. The Ministry of Energy had been working on it for some time, but today, thanks be to God, its result has been achieved. The problem of Bushehr and other cities in the province has been water scarcity; this project will solve this problem to a very large extent. Thanks be to God, today this project has reached the stage of extraction and fruition, which is very gratifying.

We hope that, God willing, all these tasks will be blessed for these people and for the officials and will attract divine grace to their condition. We ask God to assist the officials so that they can provide worthy services to these dear, faithful, and hardworking people who have been afflicted by deprivation for years. We also pray for the people of this province that God grants them success so that, God willing, they can fulfill their share in the progress of the country's affairs and maintain their strong presence in political fields; as it has been until today. We also ask for success and grace from Almighty God for the serving government and the dear officials of the government.

God willing, you will be successful

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings