Islamist party to dissolve

By Mohammad Ben Hussein

AMMAN - The political bureau of the Islamist Centrist Party (ICP) is moving forward with a recommendation to dissolve the party in light of its poor showing in last month’s parliamentary elections.

Following two days of deliberations, the political office of the ICP has urged activists to start legal procedures to disband the party, according to party leaders.

The office’s recommendation is expected to be reviewed by the party’s shura council and members across the country within the next month, said Marwan Faouri, head of the ICP’s political office.

"We want to send a message of protest against the political situation in the country following the disappointing parliamentary elections," Faouri told The Jordan Times over the phone on Wednesday.

Fauri stressed that should the party disband, members will continue to play a role in the country’s political life.

"The decision to dissolve the party is an introduction to another line that we will take, but it is premature to say what the party will do," he added.

The party fielded 11 candidates in Jerash, Zarqa, Madaba, Amman and Tafileh, but only Musa Zawahreh from Zarqa secured a seat in the Lower House.

The dismal showing for the party, which has nearly 1,500 members concentrated in urban areas, has been a cause for “political soul-searching”, said Faouri, who blamed the temporary Elections Law for their disappointing performance.

In a statement issued earlier this week, the party criticized the government for introducing the legislation, which they claimed supported "narrow tribal allegiances against political parties".

November’s parliamentary elections culminated in a poor showing for opposition parties across the country.

None of the eight candidates fielded by a coalition of opposition parties representing the Hashed, Jordan Baath, Jordan Communist and National Unity parties won a seat through direct competition.

Only Abla Abu Olbeh, secretary general of Hashed Party, won through the women’s quota after securing 10.2 per cent’s of the vote in Amman’s First District.

The Islamic Action Front, the Muslim Brotherhood’s political arm, boycotted the elections in protest against the Elections Law.

In 2007, the IAF was the only political party to reach the Lower House of Parliament, winning six seats, its worst showing since the reintroduction of political life in 1989.

2 December 2010

Source: The Jordan Times.
Link: http://jordantimes.com/?news=32265.