The legitimacy of our establishment stems from Islamic thought and depends on adherence to Islamic teachings and principles. The same is also true with regards to the legitimacy of the Majlis and the leadership.
Our late magnanimous Imam Khomeini once noted that the people would withdraw their support for the officials— including he himself— if they deviated from Islam, and he was right. Indeed, even today if we deviate from the right path, it is we[The officials] who will suffer. But the Islamic movement of the Iranian people will never deviate from its path, and it will continue to move forward.
The reason is that the Islamic system does not depend on officials. Once our late Imam Khomeini stated that the Islamic system did not rely on him. We were really surprised by this remark since the late Imam [Khomeini] was the author of the Islamic revolution and the founder of our Islamic establishment. However, he insisted that our system did not rely on him. Thus, if the Iranian people can protect their Islamic system without the presence of our late Imam, they can surely do so without the presence of us.
Imam Khamenei, May 28, 2003
