Jordan Times
Monday, December 17, 2007
Gov’t wins historic vote of
confidence
By Mohammad Ben Hussein
AMMAN - The government of Prime Minister Nader Dahabi on Sunday won the Lower
House’s vote of confidence after garnering a record high 97 yes votes.
Out of the House’s 110 lawmakers, the six Islamic Action Front (IAF) deputies,
in addition to five other MPs, voted “nay”, one abstained and one was absent.
The record high vote came as no surprise to observers after the majority of
deputies praised the premier and his 27-member team during a four-day debate of
the new government’s policy statement.
Some lawmakers went as far as declaring their endorsement for the Cabinet ahead
of the final day.
Observers agreed that the record vote entails further responsibility on the
premier as he will be expected to meet high expectations of the Parliament.
The IAF, the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, is the only political
party represented in the Lower House.
The National Coalition for Political Parties, an umbrella of 13 opposition
parties, fielded six candidates during the November 20 polls, but none of them
made it to the House.
Among the MPs who voted against the premier was Deputy Nariman Rousan (women’s
quota), who said she found nothing new in the policy statement presented last
week.
Surprisingly, Deputy Mohammad Al Haj (Zarqa, 4th District), the former head of
the IAF branch in Ruseifa, was among those who gave their backing to the
premier. Haj was dismissed from the Islamist movement last month, after running
in the elections against the wishes of his leadership.
Addressing the House ahead of the vote, Dahabi reiterated his commitment to
carrying out the economic reform programmes outlined in the King’s Letter of
Designation, considered as an action programme with a set timetable for
implementation.
The premier reiterated the government’s commitment to implementing economic
policies to reduce the budget deficit and tackle irregularities to maintain a
solid and stable fiscal policy.
“The government policy to lift subsidies on certain goods comes in favour of
citizens as the government’s support will be directed towards citizens who truly
deserve it,” Dahabi said.
The premier vowed to take “immediate measures” to control the soaring prices of
basic commodities, including intensifying inspection campaigns in main markets.
He also promised that the government would review taxes on certain commodities
to guarantee their availability at “reasonable prices”.
Regarding the energy sector, the premier told lawmakers the government is
working on alternative sources of energy, citing a plan to build an
electricity-generating plant that works on wind power in Jerash. He said tenders
have already been floated.
The premier’s remarks came as many MPs called on the government to find
alternative energy sources to fuel.
The Kingdom has garnered international support to build a nuclear power plant,
while there are plans to exploit the Kingdom’s large deposits of shale oil.
Dahabi promised to implement plans outlined in his policy statement on housing,
education, agriculture and other sectors.
The King appointed Dahabi last month with the main mandate of reviving the
sluggish economy and improving the living standard of citizens.