Inside the Eye – Live! for Saturday, June 9, discussed the evolving financial challenges facing the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan as the IMF seeks to coax Jordan’s government to further tax an increasingly taxed (and poor) population as the country tries to assuage the IMF in payments due on a US$723 million bridge loan that Jordan took out in 2016.

A bloated, but not extravagantly paid, public sector, losses in traditional trade due to the Iraq and Syrian wars, as well as political differences of opinion with Saudi Arabia in regards the ongoing Saudi efforts in Yemen has meant that traditional subsidies to the Kingdom have dried up,

In order to satisfy the IMF, a very unpopular tax increase was pushed through the Parliament seeking an increase of up to 5% on income in the Kingdom.  In response, political unions as Council of Professional Associations was able to spearhead the bringing out of some 500K people into the streets of Amman.

All of this massive demonstration resulted in Prime Minister Malki’s resignation, King Abdullah II’s dissolving of the government, and the appointment of outgoing Education Minister Omar Razzaz to be appointed as Interim Prime Minister and the calling of a special 4 way meeting between Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Jordan to discuss the financial crisis.

Hours 2 and 3 were filled with guests Ken O’ Keefe (hour 2) and Stan Hess (hour 3) in what proved to be another quality show.

You can listen here:

Inside the Eye – Live! Full Show – 6.9.18

The show was additionally simulcast on Inside the Eye – Live!’s Youtube channel