The Moroccan writer residing in Italy, Amin Bouchiba, articulates a pressing concern about the current situation in Morocco, asserting that the struggles faced by citizens today are not merely a fleeting crisis of rising prices or a reflection of global market fluctuations, as the government attempts to portray through its official media and spokespersons with their so-called 'phantom achievements.' He emphasizes that the reality is far graver, positing that there is a systematic policy aimed at dismantling the will of the Moroccan people, engendering feelings of helplessness and daily humiliation. This, he argues, ultimately transforms the quest for freedom, dignity, and social justice into a distant dream.
Bouchiba highlights that the signs of this political and social retribution began to emerge the moment Moroccans took to the streets demanding their rights to freedom, justice, and a crackdown on corruption and tyranny. Once the populace shattered the barrier of fear and raised its voice against a rent-seeking economy and the monopolization of wealth and power, certain influential circles began to view citizens not as partners in the nation but as adversaries that needed to be subdued and brought back into a state of 'obedience.'
He reflects on the public boycott campaign against companies linked to Aziz Akhannouch, noting how it starkly revealed the mentality governing the country. Citizens were not treated as free consumers exercising their legitimate right to economic protest; instead, they were regarded as 'rebels' deserving punishment. The condescending language employed by Akhannouch, who spoke of the need for 're-education,' likened the populace to a herd that must be taught obedience rather than listened to regarding their valid demands.
Widespread Poverty and Psychological Pressure
According to Bouchiba, it appears there has been an unannounced decision to drive Moroccans further into poverty while imposing psychological and social pressures. The prices of essential goods—such as oil, sugar, vegetables, meat, fuel, transportation, electricity, water, education, and healthcare—have skyrocketed, making even the most basic conditions for a dignified life an immense burden for millions of Moroccan families. Meanwhile, wages have stagnated, as if citizens are expected to shoulder the consequences of political and economic failures alone.
He asserts that the chaotic price surges witnessed in Moroccan markets are not merely transient economic disturbances but rather a natural outcome of an alliance between power and wealth, with market monopolization by lobbies linked to influential centers. The Akhannouch government, according to him, did not come to safeguard the purchasing power of Moroccans but rather to protect the interests of major monopolists, even at the cost of crushing the middle class and pushing the poor toward despair and collapse.
For many Moroccans, the state has transformed into a colossal tax-collecting machine: raising prices, burdening taxes, reducing services, and leaving citizens to face hunger, unemployment, illness, and despair on their own. Alarmingly, some are attempting to convince the populace that their suffering is a 'natural fate' and that those who complain are merely exaggerating or serving 'suspicious agendas.'
A Nation That No Longer Accommodates Its People
However, the undeniable truth recognized by all is that Moroccans are no longer asking for luxury; they are simply demanding the right to live with dignity in their homeland. They seek a state that protects them rather than a regime that punishes them. They desire an economy that serves the people instead of monopolistic lobbies, and they want leaders who genuinely understand the struggles of the populace rather than boast about numbers and empty speeches.
The most dangerous action any authority can take is to make its people feel that their homeland no longer accommodates them. While societies may endure poverty for years, they cannot forgive humiliation or forget those who have turned their daily lives into a hell of inflation, fear, and helplessness. Moroccans, who have long endured marginalization and contempt, now recognize more than ever that the crisis they face is not solely one of rising prices but a crisis of governance, mentality, and authority that has chosen to side with wealth and influence against the people.
When dealing with electricity bills becomes a battle, and the cost of living transforms into a nightmare for Moroccan families, it is evident that the issue has transcended mere governmental failure; it is a profound moral and political collapse. A state that cannot protect the dignity of its citizens or neglects their struggles risks opening the floodgates to anger, loss of trust, and social explosion. The haunting question that plagues Moroccans daily remains: How long will this nation continue to ask the poor to be patient while the coffers of the country are opened to rent-seeking and monopolistic lobbies? And how long will the people bear the burden of policies they did not choose, with governments that only heed the voices of the wealthy and influential?
As reported by ech-chaab.com.
