Amman - The reshuffled Jordanian government said Wednesday
it was embarking on a new era of 'openness' with the Islamic-led
opposition in order to speed up political reforms, including the
enactment of a new election law.
'Upon instructions from King Abdullah II, the government will be
staging a new epoch of openness with all political parties and
civilian society organizations in the run-up for the enactment of
laws that boost democracy and reforms,' newly-appointed Minister of
Political Development Mussa Maaita said.
'All draft laws needed for re-organizing political life in the
country, including the election law, will be on the table of dialogue
with political parties,' he added.
Maaita, a left-leaning politician, was picked earlier this week by
Prime Minister Nader Dahabi as new minister for political development
in a major reshuffle of his 15-month-old cabinet - apparently in a
bid to assure opposition parties, foremost the Islamic Action Front
(IAF), that he was determined to go ahead with political reforms.
The IAF, the political arm of the influential Muslim Brotherhood
movement, has cast doubt on the ability of the reshuffled government
to carry out the purported reforms, including the change of the
notorious election law which they said had produced a new lower house
of parliament that does not represent the will of the people.
Former Interior Minister Eid al-Fayez, whom Islamists accuse of
rigging the general elections in November 2007, was dropped from the
new ministerial formation and replaced by Nayef Qadi, reportedly with
clean record when he performed the same job a decade ago.
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