Ouahbi says both PJD-led governments failed miserably in dealing with Morocco’s uprising challenges

PAM Secretary General, Abdellatif Ouahbi, stated that both Benkirane’s and El Othmani’s governments have failed to abide by Morocco’s developmental model, for the latters tended to adopt a political approach which is deemed devoid of any holistic visions that are likely to ensure political effectiveness.

“The governmental formations that followed the 2011 constitutional declaration have engaged in a set of reforms imposed by globalization, thus disregarding Morocco’s economic peculiarities and constraints”, Ouahbi stressed, during his electoral program presentation on Monday (August 09, 2021), noting that the repercussions in this regard were huge, especially in light of the coronavirus outbreak which caused a series of imbalances to prevail.

“Today, we shall all take part in Morocco’s new reforms, in order to preserve our previous gains and make way for new achievements in the future”, he added.

“The new developmental model represents a turning point in terms of our unity and awareness, for we shall all stand behind HM to achieve both progress and prosperity”, Ouahbi declared.

In this respect, Morocco’s political parties shall all engage in the upcoming elections, thus providing their own programs, visions and solutions to Morocco’s economic crisis.

Within this context, we are required to review Morocco’s reformatory background in order to be able to assess the developmental model in progress; upon which, three main points prevail as follows:

First: the state has always been a key factor to all of Morocco’s previous reform models, therefore, it is safe to say that the state’s role is mandatory and decisive.

Second: Morocco’s previous reform models were neither holistic, nor harmonious or coordinative. In fact, the former models were whether publicly-based (the model by the late left-wing Minister Abdallah Ibrahim), or privately-oriented (the case of the structural adjustment program model, for example).

Third: All of Morocco’s previous models have been imposed by higher authorities in total disregard of civil society’s forces and actors. It is true that the development model brought upon by the Economic Rehabilitation Program for the 1993-1998 period stipulated the necessity of involving all economic and social actors (the Syndicate of Employers and Trade Unions), however, the later remained open for interpretations.

“By recalling the above, we shall be able to develop the current model accordingly, provided the need to overcome all negative aspects in the process”, Ouahbi underlined.

The Moroccan state has been at the heart of public debate throughout the entire developmental process, thus reaffirming its key role in Morocco’s political and economic life.

The Moroccan state has also served as the country’s leading legal advocator in terms of initiating solutions and alternatives, for all social and political movements have been urging the latter to engage in the democratization process, PAM’s chief indicated, claiming that Morocco’s historical aspects deny all foreign parties the right to dictate our developmental path; therefore, Morocco’s legitimate state managed to monitor the reforms in process in compliance with the modern era’s stipulations.

Morocco’s new developmental model is the product of an extensive public discussion with several social and political actors, for the latter carries upon a participatory approach, as opposed to former projects, Ouahbi stressed.

“Our historical and democratic understanding of the new developmental model brings us to believe in the necessity of implementing its contents accordingly”, Ouahbi pointed out.

The new model aims at ensuring the well-being of all Moroccans, for it tends to determine Morocco’s developmental orientations in general, rather than serve as a temporary political program.

“All parties, through their political and economic programs, are required to implement the contents of the new developmental model into Morocco’s institutions and organizations”, Ouahbi noted.

Most great nations around the world made sure that their political, economic and social components all agree to one single strategy before marching hand-in-hand towards achieving development (such as the United States and China, to name a few), Ouahbi revealed.

The new developmental model is rather totalitarian, for it eyes all social groups and economic sectors. Besides, the latter is far from being state-oriented, for it tends to include all political and civil components.