Morocco Suspends Local Officials Over Urban Planning Violations

The president of the commune of Dar Bouazza, as well as the vice-presidents, are affected by this suspension measure. The same applies to the current president of the commune of Ouled Azzouz, and his predecessor, president of the territorial solidarity group, in charge of the management of the Arrahma cemetery.

The services of the Ministry of the Interior decided to suspend these officials based on the reports of the commissions dispatched to the field and having noted serious violations of the texts on urban planning and the issuance of building permits. The governor of the province of Nouaceur has requested the dismissal of the persons concerned. The administrative court of Casablanca will rule on this request on August 7.

For some civil society actors, the dismissal of these elected officials is not enough. They call for the opening, by the National Brigade of the Judicial Police (BNPJ), of an investigation into these shortcomings that have led to the proliferation of anarchic constructions and a challenge to the development plan of the communes of Dar Bouazza and Ouled Azzouz.

The local authorities had alerted the governor of the province of Nouacer to the "repeated violations in the field of urban planning, including the issuance of building permits on bare agricultural land, the issuance of declarations to carry out economic activities on non-dedicated land, the division of properties without consulting the administration and the issuance of repair permits without respecting the standards in force".