AMMAN - Deputy Khalil Atiyyeh has withdrawn his resignation, while two other MPs still insist on leaving Parliament, describing their resignations as "irreversible".
Atiyyeh said yesterday he has second thoughts after "tremendous pressures" from House Speaker Faisal Fayez, his fellow MPs, notables from his district and presidents of political parties and professional associations.
"I did not want to fail my supporters who wanted me to continue performing my legislative duties under the Dome," Atiyyeh (Amman, 1st District) told The Jordan Times over the phone on Tuesday.
Atiyyeh had announced his resignation last week in protest against the results of the controversial vote on the "casino file" which declared Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit clean of corruption and impeached his former tourism minister Osama Dabbas in the same case.
"It is true that I and some 54 other MPs are not happy with the results of the vote, but we delivered a message of dissatisfaction and protest and created a precedent in the Kingdom's political and parliamentary history," Atiyyeh said.
On the other hand, deputies Mohammad Maraayeh (Southern Badia) and Shayesh Khreisheh (Central Badia), who walked out last week, said yesterday that they will not reconsider their decisions despite calls by several MPs who urge them to go back to the House.
Maraayeh explained that the results of vote on the casino case made it clear to the public that the House is incapable of playing an influential role in combating corruption to the point where "deputies are viewed by the public as powerless and needless".
Khreisheh pointed out that the House has not yet made any tangible progress whatsoever in improving the living conditions of people nor in eradicating corruption and therefore, "it has become completely useless".
On Monday, 54 MPs issued a joint statement calling on the four deputies to reconsider their decision.
MP Wasfi Rawashdeh (Maan, 2nd District), who also submitted his resignation last week, was not available for comment.
© Jordan Times 2011
