Jordan Times
Friday, July 22, 2005
Badran gov't wins vote of confidence
Tally shows 66 deputies in support of government,37 against and 6
abstentions
By Mahmoud Al Abed
AMMAN — Prime Minister Adnan Badran's government won the legislature's
confidence Thursday when 60 per cent of the 110-member Lower House voted in
favour of the Cabinet following four days of fiery debate on its policy
statement.
The tally showed 66 members in support of the government, 37 against and six
abstentions.
House Speaker Abdul Hadi Majali voted in favour, although traditionally speakers
invoke a House bylaw which allows them to refrain from voting. Speakers break
with tradition usually in cases when a sway vote is needed.
All 17 Islamic Action Front deputies denied the government confidence, an encore
of the stand they took against the Faisal Fayez government in December 2003.
A majority of the 10-member Democratic Alliance Bloc also voted nay, including
their president, Mamdouh Abbadi (Amman, 3rd District).
The bulk of support came from the two influential blocs: the 24-member National
Action Front headed by Speaker Majali, and Irbid Deputy Abdur-Ra'uf S.
Rawabdeh's National Democratic Front (NDF), comprising 17 members, including MP
Abdul Karim Dughmi (Mafraq).
But Dughmi told the House in a floor address before the vote that he originally
intended to withhold confidence but he had second thoughts after pressures from
bloc members.
Of Majali's bloc, only Mohammad Adwan (Balqa, 2nd District) voted against the
government, and Insaf Khawaldeh (Tafileh) abstained.
Meanwhile, all members of the NDF voted in favour of Badran's government, except
for Moussa Zawahreh (Zarqa, 2nd District) who abstained.
Fayez Shdeifat (Mafraq) was the only legislator from the 10-member National
Front Bloc, headed by MP Hashem Qaisi (Amman, 6th District), to vote nay, while
members of the Shaab Bloc were split over the stand on the new government. Three
Shaab members, including Khalil Attiyeh (Amman, 1st District), vote nay, and the
other six bloc members backed Badran. Attiyeh made news recently when first he
resigned from the House claiming reasons related to the recent government
reshuffle, and then again when he retracted the resignation.
Meanwhile, five of the eight members of the Independents Assembly voted against
Badran and his team. They were Abdul Rahim Malhas (Amman, 3rd District), Abdul
Munem Abu Zant (Amman, 2nd District), Abdullah Akaileh (Tafileh, 2nd District),
Adab Saud (Tafileh) and Mohammad Bani Hani (Irbid, 1st District).
Their fellow member Yusri Jazi (South Bedouin District) voted yea although he
had announced in his speech during the debate that he would withhold confidence.
The five-member Watan Bloc stood unanimously in favour of Badran, as did the
four in the Reformists Bloc. One independent, Bassam Haddadin (Zarqa, 1st
District) voted nay, and another, Mustafa Shneikat, abstained.
Among the yea voters were a majority of the 48 members who had signed a petition
that compelled Badran to reshuffle his nascent Cabinet in response to protests
by the group about the composition of the government, especially the absence of
southern representation.
House members and representatives of the blocs took the podium for four
consecutive days, with most accusing the government of lack of seriousness
regarding its declared reform programmes and fight against corruption.
Before the vote, Badran made final remarks pledging further steps to ease the
impact of the recent hike in fuel prices on citizens, including new measures to
the declared JD35 million Social Security package. The government came under
fire by the entire House spectra for the 10-33 per cent increase in fuel prices,
which the executive declared is part of a three-year plan to completely
eliminate oil subsidies.