By Mohammad Ben Hussein

AMMAN - Hailing His Majesty King Abdullah’s decision to dissolve the Lower House of Parliament, opposition leaders called for the upcoming polls to be held “as soon as possible” under a new elections law.

In a letter to Prime Minister Nader Dahabi yesterday, the King instructed the government to amend the Elections Law, which opposition parties said prevented previous polls from being free and fair.

"If elections are held under the current law, the political situation could become worse," warned Munir Hamarneh, secretary general of the Jordan Communist Party.

"The Parliament was a total failure at many important moments. It was unable to deal with the impact of the global financial crisis, failed to address security issues among tribes in the north and south and introduced repressive legislation," said Hamarneh, attributing Parliament’s poor performance to the one-man, one-vote system.

"The only way out is to have a new elections law that guarantees opposition and other political parties’ representation," he said, noting that activists, politicians and officials have discussed a replacement formula “for years”.

“The government has a clear idea on what the opposition and others want from the new law. It has to be based on proportional representation whereby qualified candidates make it to the House," he added.

Ahmad Youssef, secretary general of the Hashd Party, expressed concern that the elections “will not take place in the near future".

"We need a Parliament that represents all sectors of society, including young people, students and teachers. This can only be achieved under a new elections law," he told The Jordan Times.

The current Elections Law, introduced in the mid-1990s, was tailored by previous governments to maintain influence in Parliament, charged Ishaq Farhan, secretary general of the Islamic Action Front, the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood.

"We, in the Islamist movement, urge the government to hold the elections on time and make sure they are held without vote rigging," Farhan told The Jordan Times.

Opposition parties argue that the current Elections law marginalises political parties and led to the election of a Parliament dominated by former army generals, intelligence officers and tribal leaders.

The recently dissolved Parliament, which was elected in 2007, included six MPs from the Islamist movement while other political parties failed to win a single seat in the 110-member House.