New Moroccan Consul in Mantes-la-Jolie Faces Challenges Finding Office Space

Appointed on June 20 as consul of Morocco in Mantes-la-Jolie, Mustapha El Bouazzaouiet will have to take office on September 1. But his taking office may not be effective on the indicated date. The reason is that it is difficult for him to find premises to house the consulate, a diplomatic representation expected by Moroccans residing in the city for years. Until now, the Moroccan consulate located in Pontoise (Val-d’Oise) has been handling the files of almost 200,000 registered people spread across the Yvelines, Eure, Seine-Maritime, Val-d’Oise and Osise, reports Le Parisien.

Politically, the installation of a consulate in Mantes-la-Jolie fuels a quarrel between the elected mayor Raphaël Cognet (DVD) and the president of the departmental council, also a local elected official - Pierre Bédier (LR). "Morocco is a highly sensitive and very political subject. And paradoxically, the new context can accelerate things, knows a close to the file. Each one will want to find premises as soon as possible to outdo the other. Pierre Bédier wants to remain indispensable on a subject he masters well and Raphaël Cognet has things to prove."