Parliament endorses senators’ version of draft illicit fortune law

AMMAN — After keeping the draft illicit fortune law on hold for a few months due to a difference of opinion between the two Houses of Parliament, lawmakers on Monday endorsed the bill.

In their second joint session in less than a week, senators and deputies endorsed the Senate’s version of the draft law.

Lawmakers agreed in their joint session last week to name the bill the “illicit fortune law”, without adding the phrase “From where did you get this?”, which is an Arabic cliché used to express doubt over the sources of money and assets.

Deputies had insisted on including the phrase, but senators maintained that it is unnecessary.

On Monday, they endorsed the rest of the bill, including a provision that expanded the jurisdiction of the draft law to include cases since 2006.

Lawmakers also ended their dispute over keeping the name of the Financial Disclosure Department or changing it into the “anti-illicit fortune department”, voting in favour of keeping the original name.

Last year, MPs rejected the Senate’s amendments to the bill, insisting on their decision to scrap the Financial Disclosure Department at the Justice Ministry and vesting its responsibilities in a judicial commission to be established for this purpose and function under the Judicial Council.

The legislation was endorsed less than a week before the end of the ongoing ordinary session of Parliament, slated for early May.

Parliamentary sources and observers say it is very likely that His Majesty King Abdullah will summon Parliament to convene for an extraordinary session to discuss and endorse reform-related laws.