King Mohammed VI Welcomes Baraka After Sacking Ministers

King Mohammed VI received Nizar Baraka, the newly elected secretary general of the Istiqlal Party (PI) at the royal palace Thursday in Rabat, lauding his efforts in “carrying out the various missions entrusted to him.”

Baraka, who succeeded Hamid Chabat after an election marked by turmoil, told the press after the meeting that it gives “a real momentum to our [Istiqlal party] role as an active actor in the rehabilitation of the politics of Morocco.”

For the new head of the Istiqlal, the meeting motivates the party to “provide answers to the major issues raised and thus contribute to building a balanced and supportive society.”

Could this new “impetus” mean a possible return to the government coalition? After the dismissal of various ministers, especially from the Socialist and Progress Party (PPS) and the Popular Movement Party (MP), many have speculated about a possible reintegration of Istiqlal into the government.

But according to Khadija Zoumi, a member of the PI executive board, these are “merely baseless rumors.” In a statement to news daily Assabah, Zoumi stated that Baraka “did not receive any offer to join the government so far to replace the sacked ministers.”

“The subject wasn’t even brought up during the board’s weekly meeting held after the royal audience,” she says. Assabah cited another Istiqlal leader, who wished to stay anonymous, and who stated that his party is not a “rebound.”

“We will only participate on our terms if a cabinet reshuffle is announced,” affirmed the source, adding that the party “would lose a lot if Nizar Baraka agreed, in the current context, to participate in the government at the head of the executive’s demande.”

On October 24, King Mohammed VI instructed the head of government to make proposals of ministers to replace the current vacancies. At the time being, Saad Eddine El Othmani is racing against the clock.

Barely recovering from its long-lived government deadlock, the possibility of change in the parties in the government majority could be a nightmare for the head of government.