Jordan at Crossroads On Eve of New Government
Abdullah Ensour's expected reappointment as prime minister, involving unprecedented consultation between the court and the parliament, may not be enough to address Jordan's political and economic challenges, write Dana Barakat and Thomas Sullivan.
Sources are predicting the likely reappointment of Abdullah Ensour as Jordanian prime minister. Their assessment comes on the heels of a consultation process led by Royal Court chief Fayez Tarawneh and involving political blocs and independent members of parliament. The consultations mark the first time that the legislature has played such a role in the selection of a prime minister, representing a milestone in the development of Jordanian parliamentary government. King Abdullah II had raised such a possibility on numerous occasions since ascending the throne in 1999.
In another sense, however, Ensour's appointment does not much matter. Jordan’s challenges are long term and external, and the prime minister, regardless of who he might be, can do little to address them. Case in point, replacing Marouf al-Bakhit with Awn Khasawneh in 2011 failed to usher in change despite Khasawneh's genuine reformist instincts. As Jordan's frequent changes in government demonstrate, switching the prime minister does nothing to diminish the country’s challenges. In addition, one must acknowledge that Ensour faces a situation that is in many ways more difficult than the one Khasawneh was dealt.
