Razzaz orders withdrawal of violating gov’t cars after public dismay

AMMAN — Prime Minister Omar Razzaz on Saturday issued an order for the withdrawal of three government-issued cars, the pictures of which were circulated on social media last week, for violating the by-law pertaining to the use of public vehicles, an official source was quoted as saying in a statement. 

The source added that Razzaz also instructed authorities to investigate and remedy any transgressions to the aforementioned by-law as well as to the amended vehicle registration and licensing by-law. 

The premier also directed rushing the implementation of the second phase of the government-vehicle tracking by-law, set to begin on May 15, to include an additional 8,500 cars, thus covering all 13,500 government issued vehicles.

According to the source, Razzaz will also issue a circular to all ministries and public institutions, affirming the need for abiding by the regulations governing the use of government vehicles, stressing that dealing with such violations will be strict, as the actions result in the “unacceptable” waste of public funds.  

Social media users circulated pictures last week purportedly showing three government-owned vehicles with the same plate number, alleging that they are used by one government official.

Earlier in the week, photos of two other government vehicles with the same number, allegedly owned by Minister of State for Investment Affairs Muhannad Shehadeh, were circulated on the web.

The Jordan Investment Commission (JIC) refuted the reports as “baseless news”, saying that Shehadeh, who is also the commission’s chairman, is entitled to only one car from the government, a Tesla, which he uses only for official purposes.

The other car, the commission said, is owned by the JIC and is used only for official long-distance field visits.