A Future Jordan - نحن الأردن

King swears in new Cabinet - Jordan

King swears in new Cabinet - Jordan
Jordan Times
08/04/2005

AMMAN — Prime Minister Adnan Badran on Thursday announced the formation of a 25-member Cabinet, including 12 ministers who served in the former Cabinet as well as prominent personalities from the private sector and civil service.

Key appointments indicate that the government's first order of business will be to smooth troubled waters both at home and in the region, while the appointment of five members, one from each of the Jordan First committees, reflects a clear understanding of the required reforms. According to informed sources, the new government, which included four women, is a reformist Cabinet that will push forth with highly desired and belated social and political reforms.

The return of nearly half of the former Cabinet supports the theory that the previous government was a house-divided. According to an informed source, the return of the 12 ministers reflects the discord that existed within the previous Cabinet on crucial political reform.

"The reformists of the previous government have been carried over," the source said. "The new government is more comprehensively reformist and has many members who are oriented towards the private sector," which reflects His Majesty King Abdullah's emphasis on the complementarity of political and economic reforms.

Political observers cited the appointments of Awni Yarvas as interior minister and Farouq Qasrawi as foreign minister as among the most significant appointments to the Cabinet. They replace Samir Habashneh and Hani Mulki, respectively, whose performance was highly controversial.

For the past several months, Habashneh has championed a new law to govern the country's 14 professional associations, the seat of Jordan's political opposition for decades. Since the beginning of the peace process more than a decade ago, the government and the associations have tangled over the legitimacy of the union's political activities. The tension between the two has escalated since last December, and culminated in the introduction of a highly restrictive law governing the associations that was introduced to Parliament in March. The introduction of the draft not only antagonised the associations, but Parliament as well, as it fell under pressure to expedite the debate and passage of the legislation. The Lower House referred the draft to its Legal Committee instead of giving it priority.

Yarvas was a General Intelligence Department major general before becoming director general of the Civil Status and Passports Department in 1996. A political observer described him as a "most important" nomination. "He is a very logical and articulate man, and a conciliatory guy. He won't antagonise the unions. And given his experience and background, he'll be able to find another way to implement a new professional associations law that is to everyone's satisfaction," said the observer.

As the drama of the professional associations was unfolding, Jordan found itself the target of Arab criticism for its proposal to the Algeria summit that was meant to revive the Arab Peace Initiative, endorsed in Beirut in 2002. It was also caught up in a diplomatic row with neighbouring Iraq over news reports claiming that a Jordanian carried out a deadly attack against civilians in the city of Hilla. The row escalated when the Foreign Ministry withdrew its envoy to Baghdad for consultations. The impasse with Iraq as well as the misconception of Jordan's position on regional issues by Arab countries during the Algeria summit, illustrated the need for a more coherent spin on Jordanian foreign policy.

A colleague of new Foreign Minister Qasrawi told The Jordan Times that the diplomat is likely to be a non-controversial figure. "He is a very responsible person and an experienced diplomat." Qasrawi, who headed the Jordan Institute of Diplomacy, served as Jordan's ambassador to Japan and Germany — key donor states.

Most notable among the "returnees" is Bassem Awadallah, former minister of planning and international cooperation, and a highly controversial figure on the political scene. Many observers were confused over the immediate return of Awadallah to the government — three months after he resigned and to again another highly influential post as finance minister.

Although the reasons behind what some described as a "surprise" resignation were not stated, others hinted at the wave of criticism by Lower House deputies and the media over the minister's handling of aid projects to the Kingdom. Some said it was due to differences with former Prime Minister Faisal Fayez over economic policies. But others criticised Awadallah, saying the 40-year-old minister, who was chairman of the government's economic policy, was acting alone on many issues. Lower House deputies criticised his ministry for exceeding its authority and not cooperating with the Ministry of Finance, especially on foreign grants, saying "there was a government within the government."

The Planning and International Cooperation Ministry will become the responsibility of Suhair Al-Ali, who was Citigroup country officer.

The Badran government replaces that of Fayez's Cabinet, which resigned on Tuesday. It is the fourth government to serve since King Abdullah ascended the Throne in 1999. While its constitution seems to reflect the cohesiveness urged by King Abdullah in his Letter of Designation, maintaining unity and efficiency will depend on the leadership of the new premier, said a political analyst. "It's a question of whether or not Badran can articulate a vision for the next year or so. A strong prime minister is intellectual and capable of creating the conditions to implement his vision," the analyst said. "Is he that kind of premier?"

An informed source believes Badran has those qualities. "The choice of the prime minister was done to bring an open mind and experience to the government. Badran is experienced and open-minded, and the whole government will reflect a mixture of these qualities."

posted by Ashraf Zeitoon @ 11:49 PM