Moroccan Prince Criticizes Kingdom’s COVID-19 Response Despite Early Success

Prince Moulay Hicham, a political scientist, appreciates the way the health crisis is being managed by the kingdom. He stated that Moroccans can be grateful for the confinement and quarantine measures, the resources for hospitals, the funds released to support the economy and many other measures that have helped limit the spread of the virus. For him, in summary, Morocco’s response has been optimal given its resources, but falls short if one is to take into account its potential.

The newspaper Le Soir reports that the Prince observed that scientific projections predict a second wave of the pandemic this winter; which represents a danger for the kingdom. Key sectors of the Moroccan economy will be in crisis in the near future. He thinks that without a significant reduction in inequalities, effective treatments against covid-19 will be of no help to the vast majority of the population. Faced with the declared failure by King Mohammed VI of the prevailing economic development paradigm, self-sufficiency and social spending must become priorities. Many sectors of activity will take time to recover from the consequences of the health crisis.

The state must avoid succumbing to the temptation to fuel false patriotism or to strengthen its authoritarian momentum by turning the pandemic into a security issue, says Prince Moulay Hicham. He believes that the surveillance technologies used to ensure social distancing should not be reused to suppress political mobilization, as is the case in Russia and China, reports the newspaper Le Soir. The state, in the face of the challenges, must be part of the dynamic of close coordination between the state and society based on trust, transparency and citizen engagement. The Covid-19 pandemic crisis is a historic opportunity for the kingdom to truly reveal itself, the Prince concludes.