AMMAN - Minister of Health Yassin Husban and Minister of Justice Hussein Mjalli on Thursday submitted their resignations on the backdrop of the Khalid Shahin case "out of their moral and ethical responsibility", the government said.
"I accepted their resignations after they insisted to accept their moral and ethical responsibility of mistakes that could have happened in their ministries," Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit said at a press conference on Thursday, which was originally meant to highlight government achievements during the past three months.
Shahin was serving a three-year prison term, along with refinery and government officials, for bribery in connection with a project to expand the Jordan petroleum refinery.
He was allowed earlier this year to travel abroad to receive medical treatment after an official medical report established that his illness could not be treated in Jordan. The case triggered public anger and criticism of authorities.
The premier insisted that the investigation has not proved any connection between the two ministers and the Shahin case, and that no pressures were placed on either official.
Bakhit revealed that the government has contacted Shahin via mediators in order to convince him to return to the country but he refused, adding that soon the government will take legal measures in order to pursue him via diplomatic channels with countries where he is staying. He was last seen in London with his family.
"The government is keen to keep a healthy relationship with the media based on openness, transparency and mutual trust. We respect the freedom of expression and the journalists' right to access to information in order to update the public with credible and worthy reports based on facts, not rumours or speculations," he said.
Reforms
Bakhit told reporters that his government has over the past three months carried out important reforms in political life through the outcomes and recommendations of the National Dialogue Committee.
He also cited a plan, to be announced next week, to restructure the salary scales of the public sector in order to ensure justice among civil servants regardless of their positions and locations.
"We also approved the Public Gatherings Law which promotes public freedoms in addition to the political parties and the elections draft laws as well as the media strategy which will ensure more freedom for the press," he said.
At the economic level, the prime minister said that he had instructed the economic dialogue committee to forge an action plan within a week.
Illustrating what he called the government's seriousness in tackling corruption, Bakhit cited the casino case which took place during his first term as prime minister in 2007 and created controversy in the country.
He insisted that what has been rumoured was totally unfounded, stressing that Jordan has not lost a penny nor a square metre of land.
Bakhit has testified before the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on the casino agreement, which was signed between the government and British company Oasis Holding Investment Ltd. in 2007.
Under the deal in question, the government then authorised the London-based investor to build a casino on the shores of the Dead Sea, but one week after approving the agreement, the officials in charge decided to put brakes on the agreement until further notice. The government of Nader Dahabi renegotiated the agreement to avoid paying $1.4 billion in fines for annulling the agreement, with reports saying that the investor was offered strategic plots of land in return for not suing the country.
Echoing remarks by His Majesty King Abdullah in a letter to the Cabinet, the premier said that some people have directed false accusations against other citizens without providing any evidence and the smear campaign even reached "some Royal family members".
"This must stop and the government will not tolerate baseless accusations anymore. I will instruct the state prosecutor to sue anyone who accuses any citizen of corruption or tries to harm their reputation without providing solid evidence," he told the press.
The media can help deter such conduct if professional journalism is observed, he said.
"I call on the press to seek balance and credibility in reporting. We vow to provide all legal guarantees needed to protect press freedom but at the same time we want the media to do its duties as the fourth estate with utmost professionalism that ensures respect of citizens' rights and reputation."
© Jordan Times 2011
