If At First You Don't Succeed

Four's the charm, eh? AP (12.04.05):

"Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, embarrassed when his three previous choices for oil minister were rejected by fellow conservatives in parliament, nominated the acting minister for the critical post Sunday. Kazem Vaziri Mahaneh, who holds a master's degree in management, has been acting minister for three months." Iran President Nominates Another Oil Chief

Mahmoud's been having trouble coming up with someone. Kazem "is a veteran Oil Ministry official who served in the previous government as a deputy oil minister." BBC (12.04.05):

"Previous nominees have been considered cronies of the president and been rejected for a lack of experience. Experts said Mr Vaziri-Hamaneh's history in the oil ministry could make his acceptance by parliament more likely." Iran MPs consider new oil nominee

"'It looks like a good decision to name someone from within the oil ministry. The atmosphere is more positive,' oil consultant Hatef Haeri told the AFP news agency." "Kamal Daneshyar, head of parliament's energy commission, said: 'He has 30 years of experience in the oil sector and I personally back him.'" Done deal, as they say. Kazem doesn't like to shave.