Rabat Residents Protest Demolitions, File Complaint with Ombudsman

The residents filed a complaint with the Ombudsman following the ongoing demolition and expropriation operations in several neighborhoods of Rabat, denouncing "abuses and violations of the law" by the local authorities. According to Article 11 of Law No. 16-14 relating to the Ombudsman’s Office, it is competent to examine the complaints of Moroccans or foreigners, individual or collective, who have suffered damages due to abuse, excess of power or any administrative act contrary to the law or the principles of justice and equity.

These waves of demolitions have sparked a lively controversy due to the absence of fair and prior compensation to the victims, required in the case of expropriation for public utility. The complainants believe that these demolitions and expropriations are without clear legal basis and would benefit "private interests".

Opposition local elected officials told Al3omk that the demolitions and expropriations in the El Mouhit neighborhood and in the Saniet El Gharbia area are not normally concerned by the draft public decision published in Official Bulletin No. 5348 of February 26, relating to the expropriated areas as part of the development plan project.

In a question addressed to the government, the deputy Nadia Touhami, from the group of the Party of Progress and Socialism (PPS) in the House of Representatives, sought to know if the legal conditions have been respected in the implementation of the demolition and expropriation operations affecting several neighborhoods of the cities of Rabat and Salé, asking if these are expropriations for public utility or amicable transactions for private projects.