His Majesty King Abdullah II
Address to the Nation
January 26, 2005
In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Blessings and Peace Be Upon our Arab Hashemite Prophet Mohammad,
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Peace be upon you, God's mercy and blessings,
It is my great pleasure to address you today, conveying my pride in you and
appreciation of your efforts in all your locations and in every part of our dear
Jordan. I address you today while you are proceeding with the process of
construction and development, recording remarkable accomplishments that are
worthy of your strong will and determination to continue the building of modern
Jordan, the Jordan that provides its men and women with opportunities to lead,
in a climate of freedom and democracy, a decent life in which each one of you is
empowered to take part in making the decisions that affect his/her life and the
future of his/her children, and open doors to contribute to the process of
comprehensive development and to reap its fruits on the basis of justice,
equality and equal opportunities.
I sought to speak to you today to present you with my vision for the process of
political, economic, social and administrative reform that we embarked upon five
years ago, and which constitutes our path towards the aspired-for development.
Based on that, I believe that political, economic, social and administrative
development is an integrated process and that we should not deal with its
elements as independent and separate units. I also deem it essential to expand
the base of public participation in this process, which needs the support and
efforts of each and every citizen.
As political development is the gateway to the full participation of all
segments of the grassroots and civil society institutions in the various aspects
of the development process, I assert here that political development should
start at the grassroots level, then move up to decision-making centers, and not
vice-versa.
Accordingly, and in order to enhance our democratic march, and to continue the
process of political, economic, social and administrative reform, and out of our
keenness to have people in their respective governorates participate in affairs
related to public facilities, investment priorities, expenditures on capital and
services projects and in overseeing the performance of official bodies in all
areas, we have deemed it necessary to reconsider the current administrative
divisions of the Kingdom. We shall have a number of "development areas, or
regions," each of which consisting of a number of governorates. Each region will
have a local council directly elected by its people to work hand in hand with
the elected municipal councils in the governorates to set priorities and draw up
plans and programmes related to their respective region. These tasks should no
longer be exclusive to central decision-makers because the people of each region
are more aware of their interests and needs. We shall as soon as possible form a
Royal Committee to study the various aspects of such an approach and to put the
appropriate mechanisms for its implementation and translation from an idea to
tangible facts on the ground.
Dear brothers and sisters,
I seize this occasion to congratulate on your behalf, our brotherly Palestinians
for their great achievement in conducting the presidential election and choosing
their legitimate leadership. Such an achievement is a key and essential step for
the Palestinians in their pursuit to regain their rights and to establish their
independent state on their national soil. We shall, as ever, be their strongest
supporter so that they realize their legitimate national aspirations.
I also seize this occasion to address all our brethren in Iraq, of all groups
and spectrums, and call on them to take part in the elections to be held in a
few days. The elections are the only realistic way for the Iraqis to achieve
security and stability, rebuild their country, and ensure that Iraq regains its
natural and special status within the region.
Once again, dear brothers and sisters, I salute you all and express my pride in
you. I ask the Almighty God to protect and bless you and to guide all of us
towards the welfare of our people and nation.
Peace and God's mercy and blessings be upon you.