The North Africa Journal – November 22, 2017: On November 13, 2017, a second round of firings hit the Moroccan government, with King Mohammed VI dismissing no less than seven General Secretaries of ministries for their alleged incompetence in implementing the state’s economic program for the Rif region, and El-Hoceima specifically.
The first to go was Abdelouahed Fikrat, the General Secretary at the Prime Ministry. It’s hard to know why Fikrat was fired, considering that he was just the second most senior official at the Ministry of the Environment when the unrest in El-Hoceima started. And the Ministry of Environment hardly calls the shots when it comes to regional economic development.
In addition to the sacked General Secretaries at the ministries of tourism, health, culture, housing, and youth/sports, three Central Directors were among a list of dismissals that is expected to expand over the coming months.
