Interview – PAM Secretary General « Abdellatif Ouahbi »: “I will work hard for PAM to win the next elections and lead the government”

The Secretary General of the Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), Abdellatif Ouahbi, was the guest of the famous radio program “Sans langue de bois” hosted by journalist Redouane Ramdani on Med Radio.

During this program, Mr. Ouahbi raised several questions on different political, economic, social and organizational issues, as well as the preparations for the next elections, PAM’s relation to other parties and its vision for the future of Morocco.

PAM’s new leadership is focused on the reorganization of the party’s structure and the way this latter operates, as well as the proper means to bring certain adjustments to the dysfunctions within the party’s old structure, he assured, stressing that ’things are now progressing in the right direction’.

Thus, the regional branches and the national elections commission function today in the best way, the political bureau also meets on a regular basis to examine the main issues and “open up to the press through more languages, he explained.

Mr. Ouahbi denied that MAP is experiencing a “disintegration” under his leadership. “This is what  some parties wish for but the reality is something else,” he said, adding that “without the clarity that must be shown by those who claim to be part of the recovery movement, it is irrational to pay the slightest attention to what they say and claim ”about the matter.

“I can’t express a position or make a decision about something that doesn’t even exist,” he stressed.

Mr. Ouahbi also assured that he has carried out several projects since his election at the head of PAM last February, including the election of regional secretaries, the reorganization of all the provincial secretariats, the creation of two institutions that remain dependent on the party’s operations today and the presentation of the party’s vision regarding the economy during Covid-19 pandemic, adding that ” PAM is in the process of developing its own vision on the new development model”.

We have also set up the national election commission, restructured the two parliamentary groups and established good relations with all political parties, he said.

“PAM has become a well-respected party for it is open to dialogue with other political components which rely on the national political spectrum,” he noted, recalling that “in the past, PAM had declared war on all parties and considered its own existence above all ”.

When asked whether PAM has become PJD’s “bumper”, Ouahbi stressed that the Islamist party “does not need one”. “PJD is a great political force, which defeated us in the 2016 elections and those who make these accusations today are those who have not failed to make our party rank first throughout the last elections, ”he said.

Mr. Ouahbi said that he does not tend to act as PJD’s advocate in its various media outlets, but that he defends democracy and the duty to respect others, “as long as the latter respects PAM and its  presence on the political scene ”.

“This is the PAM that Abdellatif Ouahbi represents, for the PAM you know no longer exists ». Since I’ve been elected at the head of this party, I have said that we must seek reconciliation and recognize that Benkirane was after all a statesman “, he ruled.

Regarding the debate on the electoral quotient, Ouehbi explained that this issue is the subject of “disagreement” within the party’s political bureau. “In order to resolve this problem and take our final position which will be transmitted to the Interior Ministry,” he said, “the political bureau has decided to hold a referendum at the level of the national council with 700 members.”

In his reply to the journalist’s question on whether Morocco could accommodate itself to a third term of PJD ruling, PAM’s Secretary General stressed that Morocco was a country that chose democracy as a path and that ” it is forbidden to disregard the Constitution.

Mr. Ouahbi did not rule out the possibility of seeing PJD win the next elections but with a lower number of seats compared to the last legislative election, adding that he will work for PAM to occupy the first place to lead the next government.

He noted that he had “good relations” with the president of PAM’s National Council, Fatema Zahra Mansouri, despite their differences on the electoral quotient.

He revealed that his last meeting with Abdelilah Benkirane was three weeks ago in his home. “He is a friend that I tend to visit and respect,” he said.

Regarding the actions of pro-Polisario activist Aminatou Haidar, Ouehdi declared that such separatists represent “nothing”. “Morocco is comfortable giving people the freedom to express themselves, and it is for this reason that I refused to speak on this subject for it is not of interest, ”he argued.

Mr. Ouahbi reaffirmed PAM’s call for the release of Rif’s “political prisoners” since this  will help strengthen the opening to Morocco’s political climate and dialogue”.

“As PAM secretary general,” he said, “I think I take some responsibility for what happened in the Rif region and that is why I took up the prisiners defense in trials”.

“PAM,being the main political force in the Rif, had to play the role of mediator to ensure dialogue with activists. This is why I asked for the creation of a commission within the party to assess our relationship with the inhabitants of the Rif and to clarify our responsibility and that of others, “he said.