AMMAN —
Lower House Speaker
Abdul Karim Al-Doghmi had to suspend an oversight session on Wednesday that had
convened to discuss the
letter of intent, signed in November between Jordan,
Israel and the UAE, amidst protests by scores of lawmakers opposing the
presence of Minister of Water and Irrigation Mohammad Al-Najjar. A total of 76
representatives had asked for a public debate of the memo.
اضافة اعلان
Pandemonium erupted
after MP Saleh Al-Armouti requested the removal of the
water minister from the
session, but Doghmi rejected the request. This lead to Armouti walking out of
the session, and scores of lawmakers following suit. Doghmi adjourned the
session for 30 minutes, but lack of quorum forced the speaker to postpone the
session until next Monday as most lawmakers refused to resume the debate.
“I could not stay in the
presence of someone who signed an agreement with the Zionist enemy, which is
going to damage the security of the nation,” Armouti told
Jordan News.
MPs
Khalil Atieh,
Tamam Al-Riyati, and Omar Al-Zuod, who spoke to
Jordan News, shared Armouti’s
view in rejecting any form of normalization with Israel. They expressed deep
pride in their stand at parliament against the water minister and saw it as “a memorable
step in the right direction that expresses the anger of Jordanians”.
Riyati called the letter
“an ominous declaration of intent that only represents those who signed it, and
not the entire nation”. She condemned Israel as “a state with a history of
betrayals and unfulfilled promises; that only seeks to usurp Jordan of its free
political will.” She hailed the House’s stand as firm and a reflection of national
priorities and interests.
Armouti added that in
the event the government does not withdraw from the deal, he would call for a
vote of no confidence.
The House media advisor
Hamza Al-Akaileh said the session’s procedures were in line with the House
bylaws, noting that “neither the Constitution nor the House bylaws include
provisions that allow the dismissal of a minister from the parliament session.”
He affirmed that there
has not been any such precedence in the history of parliament, noting that the
House could resort to other constitutional means to voice their rejection, like
calling for a vote of no confidence against a minister or the entire cabinet as
stipulated under articles 53 and 54 of the Constitution.
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