IRNA - Presidential candidate Mostafa Mirsalim said on Tuesday that he will defend the Iranians right for implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) reached between Iran and world six major powers in 2015.

�I am not against the JCPOA,� Mirsalim said while speaking in a local ceremony in this northwestern provincial capital city.

He described the JCPOA as an �ambiguous text that resulted in suspension of sanctions but it has not removed them.�

He further criticized Iran�s current government for not paying enough attention to the opportunities made for the country by the landmark nuclear deal.

Ebrahim Raeisi, Custodian of Imam Reza (AS) holy shrine; Fist Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri; former minister of culture and Islamic guidance Mostafa Mirsalim; and former minister of physical education Mostafa Hashemi Taba; as well as President Hassan Rouhani are the present five candidates to run for presidency in the forthcoming presidential elections.

Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who serves as the mayor of the Iranian capital, was the sixth presidential candidate but he released a statement on May 15 and dropped out in favor of Ebrahim Raeisi. He asked his supporters to back Raeisi.

After the 1979 Islamic Revolution which led to the fall of the Pahlavi regime, Iran has held one election each year on average, all of which have witnessed large turnout of the people.

Over 56 million Iranians are eligible to vote in Iran's 12th presidential elections, according to Ali Asghar Ahmadi, head of the Election Headquarters of the Interior Ministry.

Some 66.7 percent of respondents to a survey carried out by the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) on May 7-8 said they will participate in Iran�s May 19 presidential elections.