Putting Jordan “on the Right Track”

Naseem Tarawnah, writing for his blog The Black Iris, argues that Prime Minister-designate Awn Khasawneh “has the tough task of seizing this opportunity and putting the country on the right track.” The author suggests that former PM Ma’arouf al-Bakhit “came right out of the gate with a target on his back,” adding that “Bakhit’s task was monumental. In the midst of a region where people were flowing into the streets calling for regime change, it was Bakhit’s job to keep things under control [in Jordan], while delivering on a reform program that, under normal circumstances, takes five years to implement, in the span of five months.”

Tarawnah hopes that the new PM ”will encourage the government to postpone the municipal elections as well as take another look at the constitutional amendments,” because “these two important pieces were so rushed to the finish line that the process was shattered along the way.” Robert M. Danin calls Khasawneh suited to tackle the issues of Jordan, and that King Adbullah’s actions suggest “an activist effort to appoint a new reform-minded government that can more effectively address the popular demands for better economic conditions and a cleaner government while ensuring that the country’s security establishment is well placed to address the multiple challenges facing the country outside and from within.