AMMAN — Secretary-General of the Parties Registry at the Independent Election Commission (IEC) Ahmad Abu Zaid said on Thursday that all political parties were required to amend their bylaws in line with governance standards issued under the Political Parties Law.

 

Speaking to Al Mamlaka, Abu Zaid said the IEC began corresponding with parties in June last year, noting that compliance varied in timing and degree.

 

The process, he added, is now nearing completion. Of the six parties that had not finalised the required amendments, four have since complied, while the Labour Party and the Islamic Action Front (IAF) have yet to complete the revisions.

 

Abu Zaid stressed that the observations differed from one party to another, noting that the IAF failed to address all of the Commission’s remarks despite being granted an additional one-week extension to finalise amendments to its bylaws.

 

Regarding the Labour Party, Abu Zaid said it formally accepted some amendments but rejected others that were requested under standards applied equally to all political parties, noting that several observations concerned provisions regulating internal party courts and disciplinary powers.

 

According to Abu Zaid, the party’s draft bylaws granted the general secretariat and the secretary-general authority to impose penalties, including warnings, suspensions and recommendations for dismissal, independently of the party court, the body tasked with adjudicating internal disputes.

 

Such arrangements, he said, contradict principles of good governance, which require an independent party court empowered to review disciplinary decisions.

 

He also cited concerns over the delegation of powers from the general secretariat to a non-elected executive office, as well as provisions allowing financial bonuses to be granted to the secretary-general from party funds in certain cases, which he said contravenes Article 25(a) of the Political Parties Law.

 

Addressing the Islamic Action Front, Abu Zaid rejected claims that the violation concerned only the party’s name. He clarified that the name constituted just one of several issues raised under Articles 5(a) and 5(b) of the law, adding that the Commission has repeatedly clarified its legal interpretation of those provisions.

 

Other observations, he said, related to the mechanism for forming and electing party courts. "Governance standards require that the general conference elect party courts, the highest authority within a party, to ensure their independence and shield them from influence by any appointing or dissolving body.

 

He also pointed to discrepancies in draft provisions governing the liquidation of party assets in cases of voluntary or court-ordered dissolution. While one draft stipulated that remaining funds would be transferred to charitable associations, Article 7(k) of the law requires that such funds revert to the political parties’ fund within the state treasury.

 

Additional remarks concerned the formation of the executive office. "The regulations mandate that all organisational structures be elected, whereas the draft granted the secretary-general full authority to appoint members of the executive office, which serves as the party’s executive leadership and primary decision-making body."

 

Abu Zaid said that, to date, no amended bylaws have been submitted by either the Labour Party or the Islamic Action Front.

 

He also said that the IEC’s Board of Commissioners recently convened and formally deemed the two parties in violation of the law, despite the extensions and official notifications previously issued. The decision was based on Article 33 of the Political Parties Law, which requires parties to rectify violations within 60 days of notification.

 

He noted that this legal timeframe constitutes an additional opportunity for compliance, similar to the process followed with other parties to ensure alignment with institutional governance standards and constitutional provisions.

 

Abu Zaid also emphasised that the Commission remains open to dialogue with any political party seeking clarification regarding the required amendments. However, he stressed that the IEC is legally obligated to enforce the law fairly and equally across all parties.