Statements in Meeting with Officials of the Foundation for the Oppressed and Disabled Veterans

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

Thanks be to God, there are many familiar faces among you. Brothers who, during a period of the Islamic Republic's life, each performed sincere service, whether large or small, in some corner, and the memory of their efforts and services remains in my mind. Perhaps most of the gentlemen—except for a few—are like this, and it is a source of happiness that one feels, thanks be to God, that the spirits, enthusiasm, efficiency, and commitments remain over time with the same freshness as in the early days of the revolution, and now you have gathered around each other, and you have strung this rosary and engaged the gentlemen in a good collective work. God willing, all of you will be successful.

Regarding the Foundation for the Oppressed and Disabled Veterans, my belief from the beginning was that if this foundation works correctly and its affairs are pursued with care, this immense wealth of the people can untie knots in some places that the government is unable to open. This is not in comparison with the government, as the foundation is a small entity compared to the large entity of the government; but in itself, due to the immense wealth in this section, it is a large entity that, if it seeks to fill existing gaps outside the usual governmental formalities, one will feel that many knots of the government and the country will be untied.

Regarding the Foundation for the Oppressed, there have always been points in my mind that, although not new, need to be reminded:

The first deficiency in this collection is the lack of precise knowledge and defined boundaries by the foundation's officials regarding the existing assets and properties of this institution. It is not that the foundation's officials know nothing about this. No, they are informed; but it is not precise and comprehensive. The foundation's officials should be aware of their assets like the owner and manager of a company and know what is happening in their organization; but they have never been like this and did not know what assets exist in their organization. That is why sometimes some people—who had no responsibility and were only members of the Islamic Republic family—would come and cry, saying that such and such property or factory or garden is being wasted. When this talk was conveyed to the officials of this vast organization, they did not cry! There is a difference between someone who does not know what assets they have and only becomes aware of its destruction and loss, and someone who considers themselves the owner and proprietor of the assets. Therefore, the first problem is that there is no attention or even regard for the assets of this collection, and it is not examined what is happening on the table that the Islamic Republic has spread for the oppressed. We should not just be content that we have been appointed as the head or manager there!

The second deficiency was the weakness of managements; of course, if it was evident. Some sections, indeed, had weak managements.

The third deficiency is the spending of the foundation's assets in areas contrary to its work philosophy. I will mention the foundation's cultural section, which I have previously told Mr. Rafighdoost. The duty of this section, at first glance to an unfamiliar person—by God, is to establish schools for the oppressed, distribute educational facilities, grant scholarships, and solve the cultural and educational problems of this class. Now, if this section, instead of fulfilling this mission, publishes a book whose publication was not necessary, what does it mean? For example, a book written eight hundred years ago has reached three editions after the Islamic Revolution, but the Foundation for the Oppressed has reprinted it with the footnotes and research of a certain researcher. This is the duty of a publishing institution; even those researches that, due to my familiarity with the people of the pen, I know what they mean. This is not the meaning of the cultural section of the Foundation for the Oppressed, and anyone involved in publications quickly understands its meaning.

Or, for example, you remember the film that the foundation broadcast on television a year or two ago. The story of this film was about the escape of a SAVAK agent from Tehran to a village, fleeing from the Hezbollah people. The summary and outcome of the film is that the SAVAK agent, overwhelmed by imagination and emotion, dies in a nightmare! This film is shown on television eight years after the revolution, and one becomes inflamed and upset that the film's subject is not novel, and after eight years of the revolution, the escape of a SAVAK agent is meaningless. This is the same as shooting an arrow at a non-target. I do not intend to criticize, and I am saying this to prevent the repetition of these issues.

The foundation also has many examples in the economic dimension. If God has favored us and granted us a blessing to serve the disabled veterans, we should not neglect this and should not lose this important matter. Not that the aids are given to inappropriate individuals—I do not say unworthy—who were not from the oppressed at all. I do not know what the intentions were and how much attention was paid to this point. This process should be in the service of the disabled veterans, and know that a single aid to the disabled veterans is valuable and, God willing, will have blessings. Fortunately, Mr. Rafighdoost, by nature and spirit, is suited to this work. From the very beginning, when there was talk of the Foundation for Disabled Veterans, one of the people who came to my mind was him, and often the same suggestion was made. Now, thanks be to God, "the truth has settled on its axis."

The first task is to extract the organization to preserve it from destruction. Base it on preserving the foundation's essence and avoid minor issues so that the foundation remains a bubbling source with transparency for the oppressed—whether disabled or not—so that, God willing, it reaches proper and correct consumption, free from any kind of reckless work.

Another point that, thanks be to God, you all pay attention to is the supervision of the foundation's adherence to the law. Do not lose the lawfulness of the collection at any cost. In this non-governmental organization, if the bond of lawfulness is broken, chaos will appear, and everything will fall apart. The essence of this lawfulness exists in the foundation and must exist, and you should preserve it without restraint or excess so that, God willing, the result of orderly work in our oppressed society is observable, and it can be claimed that a certain number of individuals have emerged from oppression.

The foundation, within the framework of three or five-year programs, can undertake to provide part of the deficiencies—such as—of a thousand villages and supply water, schools, health, and small employment workshops for their internal living to become self-sufficient so that it can claim that it has been the Foundation for the Oppressed and has worked for the benefit of the oppressed.

God willing, you will be successful.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings