His Majesty King Abdullah on Wednesday reiterated his commitment to seeing parliamentary elections come through before the end of this year, urging the Senate to do its utmost to accelerate the enactment of legislation pertaining to political reform.

During a meeting with Senate President Taher Masri and members of the Senate’s permanent office and committees, the King stressed the need for “transparency and courage” in confronting outstanding challenges.

“I do not have any worries about dealing with all challenges,” the King said, calling for coordination and cooperation among all parties involved to reach parliamentary elections that will yield a credible and truly representative Parliament.

Citizens should feel changes in political life in Jordan this year, or else Jordan will have failed to seize the opportunity to capitalise on the Arab Spring and the political reform achieved so far, King Abdullah told the senators, noting that securing people’s confidence in this drive is key to success.

“We meet today to make sure that we are on the same page. We must work swiftly and seriously, not only on political reform, but also to confront economic challenges and improve citizens’ living conditions,” the King told the senators, noting that economic challenges are serious and “citizens think… how they can make ends meet and about finding jobs”.

During the meeting, Masri said the Upper House agrees with His Majesty that elections should be conducted this year. He pointed out that the Senate is working to finalise reform-related legislation swiftly, while at the same time ensuring in-depth studies and that no rash decisions are made.

Masri told the King that the Senate Legal Committee yesterday endorsed the Political Parties Law, adding that the Senate is now waiting for the draft Elections Law to be passed on to it for deliberation. The draft is currently being debated by the Lower House Legal Committee.

In their remarks at the meeting, senators contributed their perspectives on how to deal with the challenges at hand. They emphasised that political reform should go hand in hand with economic and social reform, noting that the education and the judiciary files are two main focuses of reform.