Morocco’s Justice and Development Party slams calls for resignation of its secretary-general

Morocco’s Secretary General of the ruling Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) and former prime minister, Abdelilah Benkirane on March 18, 2017 [FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images]

The opposition Justice and Development Party denounced calls for the resignation of its Secretary-General, Abdelilah Benkirane, after the party lost in elections in Fez.

In a statement issued yesterday, the party’s General Secretariat expressed its dissatisfaction with what it called “media and partisan interference” in the party’s internal affairs, describing it as “immoral and unprofessional” and firmly rejected it.

The party leadership also confirmed that party members choose their leaders independently and democratically, and they are the ones who decide who will continue and who will leave.

The National Rally of Independents, which heads the government coalition, won the seat in Fez on 23 April.

According to the Justice and Development Party, there has been a significant decline in the participation rate in these elections and this “affects confidence in institutions and their ability to perform their role.”

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