Monday, the House of Representatives voted by a majority to refer the former Minister of Water to the Integrity and Anti-Corruption Commission.

Parliament Speaker, Abdelkarim Dughmi, called on parliament members to vote on referring the former minister to Jordan’s Integrity and Anti-Corruption Commission (JIACC) after appointments in the ministry were made on the service procurement system (i.e. freelance).

Dughmi said that these appointments are in violation of Article 5 of the Anti-Corruption Law.

The House of Representatives unanimously decided to refer the former Minister of Water to JIACC, after those appointments were not made through the Civil Service Bureau.

Representative Ahmed Qatawneh revealed, during the session, that there are dozens of appointments in a number of ministries, the most important of which is the Ministry of Water and Irrigation, through the system of purchasing services (freelance), away from the Civil Service Bureau.

The current Minister of Water and Irrigation, Mohammad Najjar, revealed that the number of such appointments reached 210 employees during past years.

Qatawneh, after the Minister of Water's answer, said that the system of purchasing services in government ministries and institutions has become an alternative to the Civil Service Bureau.