Lower House endorses public-private partnership bill

AMMAN — The Lower House on Wednesday endorsed the draft public-private partnership law one day after concluding deliberations over it.

The decision came during the Lower House meeting on Wednesday, the last in this extraordinary session, under a Royal Decree issued Tuesday.

The bill faced strong opposition in the Lower House, but the majority of MPs voted for endorsing it.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour took the podium at the beginning of the meeting to speak about the draft law, describing it as a very important piece of legislation in the country's economic reform agenda.

He did not agree with views that the bill is going to be exploited to legalise corrupt practices. 

“I have heard this bill described as a return to the privatisation policies and another doorway that would facilitate corrupt practices,” the premier said, noting that the council overseeing the implementation of the law will not include representatives of the private sector, under changes introduced to the law by MPs. 

Under this make-up, Ensour argued, the council will not be involved in privatisation projects. 

“MPs’ objections are not valid in this regard,” he said.

The Lower House did not vote on the bill during Tuesday’s session, despite discussing all its articles. 

Parliamentary sources said the vote was postponed because the meeting lost quorum, forcing Deputy Lower House Speaker Ahmad Safadi to adjourn the meeting.

With the current extraordinary session scheduled to conclude on Friday, Lower House Speaker Atef Tarawneh said Parliament will reconvene for another extraordinary session expected to start after Eid Al Fitr, the Muslim feast marking the end of Ramadan.