Rabat – From the elections in Morocco comes an unprecedented result for the area: for the first time the Islamists collapse. After 10 years of government, the party of Justice and Development (PJD) obtained only 12 seats compared to 125 in the previous legislature. Not even the secretary, already resigned, and former Prime Minister El Othmani, was able to secure a seat in Parliament. The center-right liberals of the National Group of Independents (Rni) triumphed led by Aziz Akhannouch, a tycoon of great charisma very close to the King, who with his 97 deputies and 82 of the Pam, party of Authenticity and Modernity, also center-right, he will lead the new government coalition.
Morocco, Islamists defeated at the polls
di Karima Moual
Mr. Akhannouch, the slogan of your electoral campaign was “You deserve better” and the Moroccans replied in the affirmative by making you arrive first and sending the PJD home. How did you do it?
“Our project was not born against anyone, or against Islamists in general. It was born for Moroccans, to improve their living conditions. We have put citizens at the center and the voters have understood it. Today’s result is the the result of five years of uninterrupted work on the territory during which we opened a dialogue with the citizens by traveling the length and breadth of Morocco without neglecting any city or village and trying to understand what the priorities of the people were. It was the voters who gave us the small and big ideas that concerned the problems that they found to live in their everyday life in the concrete. We built our program based on them. In the end our program reflected what most Moroccans expected from politics and played a fundamental role, but the reputation of the politicians in the field was no less. Even the figures of our party who had ministerial responsibilities i in the previous government had distinguished themselves for their ability and reliability. However, the PJD has spent 10 years in government. Ten years in which he was put under scrutiny by the voters and was able to clarify his proposal to the Moroccans. But we must not forget that the last few years marked by pandemics and job losses have not been easy. Moroccans felt the need to change and the results were certainly a call for change. Ours remains a democratic country. The Islamists have been given a first and a second chance. Now the people have decided to change and have given us, and other parties with which the majority will have to be formed, the task of turning the page. “
The surprise of these elections was also the turnout above 50 percent, not entirely obvious …
“Especially in times of Covid. Three million more voters and many young people who voted for the first time. This means great hope and trust.”
Where will you start your challenge to improve citizens’ lives?
“The central point is undoubtedly the work. It is no coincidence that we have promised a million jobs in the next five years. We will have to increase investment to create jobs. Then there is the issue of health. We have to build the skeleton of a solid public health, with doctors up to par in quantity and quality. We have budgeted for this. Moroccans also want a good education for their children. In this field there can be no territorial discrimination between towns and villages. Everyone must have the right the possibility of going to a good school. Let us not neglect even the figure of teachers. They must have more and more training tools in addition to the possibility of increasing salaries, because a good education is the pillar of our children’s future. And then there is the question of the fragility of informal work, which completely cuts some citizens out of social and health coverage. On this we have a precise recovery project “.
And what are your foreign policy goals?
“Our King Mohammed VI has always had a clear vision: openness to the world. And so it will continue to be. We have the first major free trade agreement with the United States, there is maximum openness to investments in ‘Africa. And then Europe, which we consider a fundamental ally “.
What is happening in Afghanistan makes you fear that the most fragile young people may become victims of radicalization?
“I believe that today’s young people are open to the world. They know languages and want to learn others, they feel the curiosity to understand and discover what is happening around them, in Europe, in the United States, wherever they can go. The web helps in this. . Problems arise when young people do not find suitable tools to cultivate their ambitions. I believe this is the challenge for any country, not only Muslim. Our task is to avoid conflicts by helping young people to reach their goals, promoting development and making so that no one in the country feels excluded or left behind “.
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