On 9 October, economic expert Ali Hussein, speaking on Al-Ahad TV (AAH — official owned media), said changing the exchange rate would help fund salaries and provide 16–20 trillion dinars; he attributed the government’s necessity to regional conditions and the closure of Hormuz, argued salary deductions would cause greater harm, and said restoring the previous rate was currently difficult but a future reduction was possible if economic conditions improved. He also described government efforts to control the parallel market and goods prices, protect citizens and pursue speculators, while identifying dependence on rent revenues as a central economic problem. Al-Janoub TV (Harakat al-Jihad wal-Bina — official owned media) separately relayed Prime Minister Ali Falah al-Zaidi’s statement accepting sole responsibility and saying the currency difference came from speculators, not citizens, just as money had been recovered from corrupt actors.
- Al-Janoub TVHarakat al-Jihad wal-Bina — official owned media09 Oct, 17:18
“I alone bear responsibility for the exchange rate, and I took the currency difference from speculators, not from citizens, just as we took money from the corrupt.”
أنا أتحمّل مسؤولية سعر الصرف وحدي، وفرق العملة أخذته من المضاربين وليس من المواطن، مثلما أخذنا الأموال من الفاسدين.
- Al-Ahad TVAAH — official owned media09 Oct, 17:19
“Changing the exchange rate will help provide salaries. The government is compelled to change the exchange rate because of regional conditions and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The government seeks to control the parallel market and the prices of goods and merchandise. The government faces a major challenge in protecting the market and citizens and pursuing speculators. Deductions from emplo”
تغيير سعر الصرف سيسهم في توفير الرواتب الحكومة مجبرة على تغيير سعر الصرف بسبب الوضع الإقليمي واغلاق مضيق هرمز الحكومة تسعى للسيطرة على السوق الموازي وأسعار السلع والبضائع الحكومة امام تحد كبير لحماية السوق والمواطن وملاحقة المضاربين الاستقطاع من راتب الموظف له اضرار اكبر من تغيير سعر الصرف الحكومة هي الضامنة للسيطرة على السوق وأسعار البضائع والسلع تغيير سعر صرف الدولار يوفر 16 الى 20 ترليون دينار
The two defenses address different questions: whether the decision is preferable to reducing salaries, and whether citizens bear its cost. Agreement in defending the decision does not establish agreement about its effects on households.