Khaberni - The ongoing discussions about the anticipated amendments to the Local Administration Law pose a question that cannot be ignored or skipped: Are we facing a real legislative reform project, or a political engineering aimed at reshaping the general scene in a way that excludes one party and appeases another?
The sensitivity of this law and its status in the structure of local administration places it at the heart of the national debate, and calls for public alertness and responsible critical thinking, not silent acceptance that passes through procedural measures.
Municipalities and governorate councils were not created to be extensions of the executive authority, nor tools that change with the change of ministers, but were meant to be elected civil institutions that represent people in the finest details of their daily lives. Any attempt to withdraw them from the hands of the citizens to the hands of the appointees, or to redefine their role in a way that weakens their popular representation, is a retreat from the philosophy of decentralization and a departure from the spirit of the Constitution which was agreed upon by the Jordanians.
It is no secret that some proposals talk about appointing mayors instead of electing them based on periodic opinion polls. However, the crisis of trust reflected in the reluctance to participate is not a justification for cancelling an inherent right, but a call for governments to rebuild bridges of trust through work, performance, and integrity, not by closing the doors on the ballot boxes. The citizen is not to blame when casting their vote for a specific political stream, but those who fail to offer a worthy alternative that earns the people's trust are to blame.
If the aim of amending the law is to exclude a particular political side, this is not political wisdom but an implicit admission of the government's failure to convince people of its programs and representatives. Legislation is not a tool to address political deficiency, nor a means to correct a partisan path, but it is a right for the citizen and the rule of law alike. Reducing participation or restricting people's choices will not create stability, but will add to the political vacuum and general frustration reflected in the declining participation rates from one cycle to another.
The people have the right to be informed about every draft, every article, and every amendment. And it is the duty of the state to involve civil society, syndicates, universities, former municipalities, and experts, in an open national discussion before the law is submitted to the council. Major legislations are not made in closed rooms and are not passed with quick administrative rhythms, because they simply shape the future of cities, the quality of services, and the citizen's place in local decision-making.
Local administration will not rise with a law tailored to fit the political circumstance or the fears of a particular current, but with a law that reassures people that their voices are preserved, and that their representatives are elected by their will not by the discretion of offices. And those who want the trust of the citizens should go to them with hard work, efficiency, and integrity, not with legislative amendments that exclude others or limit them.
Jordan today is at a critical legislative turning point
Either real reform that restores respect for public participation,
Or political engineering that weakens democracy as it seems to address it.
And what we need most is a law that solidifies decentralization, not one that abolishes it, and restores citizens' trust, not erodes it, and grants municipalities and governorate councils a real representational power that makes them partners in development, not subservient to the changing will of a minister.
The law is not a tool to exclude a current, but a mirror of the state's justice and wisdom. And the peoples whose factions are excluded do not build democracy, but build a fragile political theater that quickly deteriorates.
And those who want to write a new page in the course of reform should not start it by closing doors, but by widely opening them to the people… all the people.
The future of local administration is not made with intentions, but with legislations that respect the popular mind and restore its natural role in decision-making.
And a country that believes in genuine participation will not fear the diversity of opinions, but will celebrate them because they are a source of its strength, not a source of its threat.
And the Local Administration Law—if it is meant to be a reform, not engineering—must be returned to the people, for they are its first and last owners..
