Unfortunately, poverty and destitution have deeply rooted in our society and will not be cured with charity, benevolent donations, populist attitudes and behaviors. The foundation of our country’s economy has suffered major damages that need to be addressed with the help of skilled economists, large investments, and assistance from experienced global industrialists with short and long-term solutions, not with deceitful actions that have only added to the immense number of deprived and impoverished individuals over the past forty years with repeated and unsuccessful trial and error methods. Such actions and behaviors have led to the exploitation of a specific group of the poor and needy in society. The relief committee has not had a successful and presentable track record in the past few decades; of course, the officials and managers of this organization are not concerned with identifying its problems. Apparently, they have achieved their selfish goals and objectives with the same methods and approaches as before; especially politicians who have taken the most advantage and abuse of this institution. They easily gain access to these unfortunate

I go to one of the neighborhood supermarkets. He introduces himself as Khosrowi. He says, “There are a lot of poor and needy people here. Some of our neighbors have entrusted us to tell the committee investigator about their living conditions and poverty. Most people here are in need; of course, some of them have small wooden houses or ride a pick-up truck and use it for transportation.”

We really don’t know what to say. The houses here are all under contract and no one has a deed. Some people easily discredit everything. If we speak up, people will come after us. Most of the time, we tell the authorities to go ask their neighbors. Neighbors also depend on their relationships with each other; if they don’t like someone, they will say something else. In short, if they have animosity or enmity towards each other, they will hand over whatever they want to the authorities. We are always in conflict over this issue. In the end, they have to determine what they have and what they don’t have. With this bank card, everything is clear and there is no need for inquiry. The government knows. They are just confusing the people for no reason. It’s clear who doesn’t have any rights or benefits in retirement funds. These people should be supported by the government. The constitution says social security for everyone.

Discussing the dos and don’ts of the Relief Committee among different segments of society leads to different and sometimes conflicting opinions, which is a clear indication of its impact over the past few decades. A young man holding a mobile phone says, “Charity and giving alms do not cure poverty; they only make some people even more unfortunate and inactive. The country must have a healthy economy and a thriving industry. In our city, if there were a few good and active factories, there would be no need for these aids that destroy people’s spirit and psyche. Receiving charity destroys a person’s pride and individuality. It leads to self-pity, self-doubt, emptiness, and burdening people. Governments should create employment opportunities for young people. Both elderly men and women who are out of work should be fully covered by social welfare organizations. Providing suitable and dignified jobs for all young people, regardless of gender, is the responsibility of governments. How have European and even

Another young person who introduces himself as a happy and graduate student enters the discussion: “To be honest, I am from the outskirts of my city. My father is a construction worker. He has raised us with hard work and toil, but not with charity or help from the relief committee. We have only lived through hard work and exhausting labor, but we have not let our pride and dignity be questioned. Unfortunately, our government officials want needy, weak, and submissive people, because they are more useful to them; for example, on election days for the parliament and city council, in our neighborhood, one of the parliament members who has an undeniable influence among the beneficiaries and the relief committee, collects votes for himself by bringing bags of rice, oil, sugar, and even women’s headscarves to the homes of these people and starts an election carnival. Everyone knows this person and others like him. There is no need to mention his name.”

Another young man interrupts him, saying, “One of our relatives who has an old television had brought it to our house and held it under his arm to prove to the investigators of the committee that he deserves it. I told him this old television is not worth much, but he said no; if they see it, they will say his financial situation is good and they won’t register him. Maybe he is right, I don’t know; with the current situation of inflation, unemployment, and all the other hardships we are facing, it is not unlikely that we will also be under the coverage of the relief committee in the near future. Life is getting harder and worse day by day for people. In my opinion, these kinds of people who give in to this humiliation are not to blame; it is out of necessity. We need to consider real, practical, and executable solutions for the lower classes of society based on the opinions of experts and professionals. We should learn from the experiences of industrial

An important question that was raised for interviewees was how to prevent political, factional, group, and personal abuses by influential individuals. What program and laws are needed to provide social security for all people and meet the basic needs of all segments of society? Dozens of unanswered questions are circulating in people’s minds. Unfortunately, there is no statistical or investigative program defined for such critical issues in any department or institution.

One of the old merchants and traders of the city, known as Haji Agha Rahmati, says: “Experience shows that many of the people who go to the Relief Committee and receive help from there are professional beggars who always roam the city. Unfortunately, their numbers are increasing day by day. Our city is a tourist city with many historical and ancient sites and is located on the path of pilgrimage. Many travelers from neighboring countries and even Europe come here to see the historical sites. They are shocked and horrified to see so many beggars. Due to our job conditions, we mostly deal with tourists and pilgrims. We see that tourists and guests are surprised and upset to see so many beggars. These people give a bad image of our city and country to the world. It is shameful for a country with so much national wealth such as oil, gas, minerals, etc. to have so many beggars. We have repeatedly complained to city officials and the municipality. It

Another young man from the city’s merchants says, “Officials can easily invite them for parades, elections, and gatherings; so they need these people desperately. Controlling and ruling over the poor and weak is easy and simple. Can we behave like this with educated, wealthy, and aware individuals? As a result, there are people who only think about their own desires and goals, and will use the poor and needy as a ladder to climb to higher positions of power and authority.”

A young girl who introduces herself as a salesperson for a company distributing hygiene and food products joins the conversation: “From morning till evening, I wander around in these shops, pharmacies, and supermarkets in the city, trying to take orders for a few items and receive a percentage of the sales as my salary. As a result, considering my job where I interact with all levels of society in both urban and rural areas, I easily feel the sense that poverty and destitution are expanding every day. The purchasing power of people has decreased significantly. Some are forced to visit these kinds of centers because it is very difficult to cover their daily living expenses. Based on our job, we see that the prices of goods change every day. So where should these people turn to for help? The cost of medicine and treatment is overwhelming. The medical committee provides assistance to the beneficiaries, and some doctors and government medical centers offer free visits and treatment. Their children have a quota for university and do not have to pay