Moroccan Student Jailed for Insulting Former Prime Minister in Text Message

A word that leads a student straight to prison. Of the three involved in this case of defamation, only Saïd was sentenced to serve a 3-month prison sentence and pay a fine of 500 dirhams. The other two, Youssef and Mohamed, were acquitted on August 22 and 23 last.

According to the facts, Youssef had asked to have Abdelilah Benkirane’s number from Mohamed during the Eid al-Adha 1440 period in order to call him. He had requested the financial assistance of the former Head of Government to go celebrate with his family. Thus, Youssef went to Benkirane’s home, where he received a sum of 200 dirhams.

In turn, Saïd will also try to obtain Benkirane’s number. He called the former PJD number 1 to ask him to return documents he had previously handed over to him. Indeed, Saïd had handed them over to Benkirane in the hope of obtaining a scholarship due to his social situation. He is an orphan and a former resident of the Lalla Meryem orphanage.

After getting in touch with Benkirane, he asked him to return his documents. In response to this request, the former PJD number 1 allegedly hung up on him, specifies the same source. This action calling for a reaction, Saïd will not hesitate to call him a "dog" in an SMS. Wounded in his self-esteem, the former Head of Government filed a complaint against the three individuals involved in this case.