Amine Bouchaib, a Moroccan author residing in Italy, has asserted that the current hardships faced by Moroccans extend far beyond a mere transient crisis of rising costs or a reflection of international market fluctuations, as the government attempts to portray through its official media and spokespersons under the guise of 'illusory achievements.' He emphasizes that the situation is considerably more alarming, stating, 'We are confronted with a systematic policy aimed at undermining the will of the Moroccan citizen, instilling a sense of helplessness and daily humiliation, thereby transforming the demand for freedom, dignity, and social justice into a distant dream.'
Bouchaib further elaborates that the roots of this political and social vendetta began the moment Moroccans began to voice their rights to freedom, justice, and the fight against corruption and tyranny. Since the populace shattered the barrier of fear and raised their voices against the monopoly of wealth and power, certain influential circles have started to view the citizen not as a partner in the nation but as an adversary to be subdued and coerced back into 'submission.'
He highlights the pivotal moment when Moroccans initiated a grassroots boycott against companies allied with Aziz Akhannouch, revealing the mentality governing the nation. On that day, citizens were not treated as free consumers exercising their legitimate right to economic protest; instead, they were regarded as 'rebels' deserving of punishment. Bouchaib recalls the condescending rhetoric used by Akhannouch, who spoke about the need for 're-education,' as if the populace were merely a herd to be conditioned into obedience rather than listened to for their legitimate grievances.
Systematic Poverty and Psychological Pressure
Since that moment, as Bouchaib notes, it seems there is an unspoken decision to push Moroccans further into poverty while increasing psychological and social pressure. Prices have skyrocketed uncontrollably—oil, sugar, vegetables, meat, fuel, transportation, electricity, water, education, and healthcare have all seen exorbitant increases. Even the most basic conditions for a dignified life have become a heavy burden for millions of Moroccan families. Meanwhile, wages have stagnated, as if it were expected that citizens alone bear the brunt of political and economic failures.
Bouchaib argues that the rampant price surges witnessed in Moroccan markets are not merely a fleeting economic disruption but are a natural outcome of the collusion between power and wealth, leading to market monopolization by influential lobbies. The Akhannouch government was not established to protect the purchasing power of Moroccans but rather to safeguard the interests of significant monopolists, even if it meant crushing the middle class and driving the poor into despair and collapse.
In the eyes of many Moroccans, the state has transformed into a colossal tax-collecting machine: it raises prices, burdens taxes, reduces services, and leaves citizens to face hunger, unemployment, illness, and despair alone. More alarmingly, there are those attempting to convince the populace that their suffering is a 'natural fate,' implying that those who complain are either exaggerating or serving 'dubious agendas.'
A Nation That Cannot Accommodate 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 want a state that protects them, not one that punishes them. They desire an economy that serves the people, not monopolistic lobbies, and they need leaders who empathize with the people's pain rather than boast about figures and empty rhetoric.
The most detrimental action any authority can take is to instill in its people the feeling that their homeland no longer has space for them. While nations may endure poverty for years, they do not forgive humiliation, nor do they forget who has transformed their daily lives into a hell of soaring prices, fear, and helplessness. Moroccans, who have long endured, swallowing the bitterness of marginalization and contempt, now realize more than ever that the crisis is not solely about prices; it is a crisis of governance, mentality, and authority that has chosen to align itself with money and influence against the people.
When paying the electricity bill becomes a struggle, and earning a livelihood turns into a nightmare that haunts Moroccan families, it becomes evident that this is no longer merely a governmental failure but an overwhelming moral and political collapse. A state that fails to uphold the dignity of its citizens or ignores their suffering opens the floodgates to anger, loss of trust, and social explosion. The lingering question that haunts Moroccans daily is: how long will this nation continue to ask the poor to be patient while the nation's coffers are opened to the monopolistic lobbies? And how long will the people bear the cost of policies they did not choose, governed by those who only hear the voices of the wealthy and powerful?
As reported by ech-chaab.com.
