Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - Around 120 members of the Lower House of Parliament on Tuesday boycotted a meeting with Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour set to discuss the government's justifications for raising electricity prices.

The government anticipated the strong opposition from Parliament over its proposed decision to lift electricity subsidies, with a majority of MPs citing that the government has not examined all possible alternatives to raising electricity prices.

Parliamentary blocs, including the Islamic Centrist and the Watan [Homeland] blocs boycotted Tuesday's meeting in parliament, which was scheduled based on a request from the Prime Minister in an effort to outline his government's policy and vision of the electricity price hikes.

The government has been attempting for weeks to get parliament's support of its decision to lift subsidies on electricity, but faces strong opposition amid blocs, including the Islamic Centrist Bloc, which threatened to withdraw its confidence vote from the government.

Ensour stressed before parliament earlier in the week that the price hikes will only affect consumers whose electricity bills exceed JD 50, citing that 85 percent of consumers will not be affected by the decision.

Watan Bloc had issued a statement on Monday wagering retracting its "partnership" with the government if the latter decides to raise electricity prices, citing that the government's proposal violates the conditions and promises made by Ensour during consultations with lawmakers to win MPs confidence vote.

The bloc threatened to resort to "parliament's constitutional prerogatives," which may at most lead to a no-confidence vote in government, noting that the government has not considered all the alternative suggestions to raising electricity prices devised by deputies, according to the statement.

15 out of the 18-member Al-Wa'd Al-Hurr [The Free Promise] bloc also boycotted the meeting.

MP Yahya Saud sent a memo from Ramallah, where he is on an official visit, calling on MPs to boycott the meeting.

A parliamentary memo calling for a no-confidence vote in government if electricity prices go up gained the endorsement of 34 MPs so far.

Several MPs apposed the Premier's decision to hold a closed session and his refusal to allow journalists to cover the session on Tuesday.

MPs Mustafa Shneikat, Fawaz al-Zou'bi, and Rula al-Hroub withdrew from the meeting, and joined MPs Insaf Khawaldeh and Rudayna al-Atti in defending media's right to cover the meeting.

MP Khalil Attiyah also stormed out of the meeting, citing that Tuesday's session is "very important," adding that "transparency requires the presence of the media in such an essential issue [raising electricity prices] which we reject."

Only 30 MPs out of a 150-strong Lower House remained in the meeting.

Ensour's meeting with MPs on Tuesday coincides with the launch of parliamentary deliberations on the 2013 fiscal budget temporary law.

Political observers anticipate that MPs will use their vote for the budget as a bargaining chip to pressure the government to retract from its decision to raise electricity prices.

Major riots and protests erupted last November when the government decided to lift subsidies on oil derivatives, which caused a major hike in prices of gasoline and cooking gas.