Jordanians cautious about prospects of new government

Khasawneh takes over at a crucial stage for the country. The government has extended a two-day, weekly curfew across the kingdom in a bid to contain the spread of the virus while limiting the damage to the economy. Under Razzaz, the unemployment rate had jumped to 23%, from 19%, while total general debt had risen to $45 billion, an increase of $5.6 billion in the last two years.

As to the parliamentary elections and in spite of general voter apathy, especially among the youth, there is still the possibility that the elections could be postponed if the spread of the coronavirus is not contained.

Commenting on the makeup of the Khasawneh Cabinet, political commentator Fahd al-Khitan wrote in Al-Ghad daily Oct. 12 that this is mainly a conservative bureaucratic government that is likely to be extremely cautious when addressing political reforms. “This government does not have the luxury of time and must act fast to confront pending challenges. It must streamline the way it takes its decisions,” Khitan said. 

“But it must be said that under these tough circumstances, no government will enjoy popularity and it should not seek it. Instead, it should work to improve the lives of Jordanians as much as possible,” he added.

Strategic researcher and head of the Middle East Center for Media and Political Studies in Amman Amer al-Sabayleh said the makeup of the Cabinet does not reflect its focus on the four main issues that were referred to in the designation letter: health, economy, food security and agriculture. 

Sabayleh told Al-Monitor he hasn’t seen a genuine program for this government to confront such issues or deliver a new reality. He said “the extraordinary circumstances that we face required a slender Cabinet, but instead, we have 31 ministers [32 including the PM] lacking in seasoned bureaucrats.” He added that even in the midst of crises, the formation of the Cabinet relied on traditional methods of geographic allocations in order to satisfy everyone.

“The only positive thing I see is that Khasawneh spent the last two years at the Royal Court close to the king so he has the advantage of knowing what needs to be done and where other government had gone wrong, but again time is not on his side,” Sabayleh concluded.

Columnist at Add-Dustour daily Hussein al-Rawashdeh wrote Oct. 12 that the new prime minister will face a number of local challenges other than those related to health and the economy. “One is the Teachers Association file, which is now before the courts, and I think the government will not back down. … The file will be closed politically,” he wrote. 

“The other has to do with the fate of the Muslim Brotherhood group, which the courts ruled is illegal, and that file too will be closed by the government,” he added. Rawashdeh also pointed to a number of steps that Jordan would take regionally in relation to the US Middle East peace plan, known locally as the deal of the century, and toward recalibrating its ties with its Arab neighbors in the wake of the latest developments.

But one critic of the way Jordanian governments are traditionally formed, who requested anonymity, told Al-Monitor Jordanians want to see a real change in approach and methods. “In the past 20 years, we have seen 12 prime ministers and 18 governments all formed in the same way, but Jordanians are tired of this formula. It’s like we complain that the soup is salty and all the chef does is to change the spoons!” he concluded.