Rabat, Morocco (TMT)- In an interview given yesterday night to Chada FM radio channel, Morocco’s head of the government Abdellilah Benkirane said that he “did get over the issue” he had with Aziz Akhannouch, the Moroccan Minister of Agriculture and Marine Fisheries, an issue that poured a lot of ink a couple of months ago following Benkirane discovering that Akhannouch was assigned the management of the “2016-2022 Rural Development Program,” endowed with a budget worth MAD 55 billion for the benefit of around 24,000 douars.
While speaking to Chada FM, Benkirane acknowledged that he, a couple of months ago, had indeed an issue with Akhannouch. Answering his host’s question about it, Benkirane said that “in life, some problems need to be digested and swallowed [ Benkirane used تتبلعها وتتصرطها], and if they [problems when swallowed and digested] do not lead to your death, then that’s good.”
Benkirane stressed that his relation now with Akhannouch “is very good,” adding that “the management of the rural development program should be normally among his prerogatives as head of the government.”
“There is no justification to withdraw this dossier from the prerogatives of the head of the government,” Benkirane stressed.
The rural development dossier sparked a lot of controversy and debate in Morocco, though it is not clear how it was assigned to Akhannouch as it needs the signature of the head of the government.
Local news outlets speculate that the official paper that handed the prerogatives of the rural development program to Akhennouch was foisted inside a stack of official papers [دس الوثيقة] and Benkirane signed it without being aware.
The Moroccan Times.
