Mayor of Rabat and 84 guests accused of early campaigning

15/08/2007

Omar Bahraoui, Mayor of Rabat, was summoned by the public prosecutor on Monday (August 13th) and will appear on Thursday before the judge of Rabat's Municipal Court.

By Hassan Benmehdi for Magharebia in Casablanca – 15/08/2007

[Hassan Benmehdi] Bahraoui was accused of using public funds to influence voters

Omar El Bahraoui, current Mayor of Rabat and deputy for the Rabat-Ocean zone will appear before the Rabat Municipal Court on August 16th to answer to charges of "premature election campaigning", "use of public funds to influence voters" and "breach of election regulations", according to the King’s public prosecutor following questioning of the accused.

In a police sweep of Bahraoui's home during a banquet on Thursday night (August 9th), 84 of his guests were detained for questioning and released from the Hay Ennahda police station in Rabat’s 14th district after midnight. In statements given to the police, guests indicated that the purpose of the meeting at the Mayor’s villa had been to discuss other matters but that Bahraoui had also asked them to vote for him in the legislative elections scheduled for September 7th.

The Mayor is also accused of having made unauthorised use of public assets. Two vehicles belonging to the local government were used to take the guests to the Mayor’s home. He also reportedly recruited a number of commune officials and staff members to organise the event, including civil servants, elected members, councillors, staff from the Entraide Nationale and employees of the Youssoufia urban commune.

The government has deemed Bahraoui's reception a form of early election campaigning. The Electoral Code prohibits all local- and national-level representatives from using public assets for election purposes or during election campaigns.

The Mayor was first summoned by the public prosecutor's office the day after his reception, Friday, August 10th. In a statement to the press, Bahraoui categorically denied having been questioned by the prosecutor's office: "It's a premeditated conspiracy against me by certain people to damage my reputation and reduce my credibility in the eyes of the people." He also explained that, like any politician, he had enemies "more or less everywhere", including the Councillor and Chairman of Souissi district, Faouzi Chaabi, whom he accuses of having spread the information.

Responding to Bahraoui's accusations, Chaabi stated to the press that "there is satisfaction all around because the state has shown everyone that the Mayor of Rabat is a citizen like any other Moroccan, and is also subject to the rule of law." He went on to say that he was unaware of the details of the story and that if they were true he would gladly have informed the public authorities: "I've already made several complaints against Bahraoui to report some of his illegal practices," he said.

The affair is a first for Morocco. Many members of the public and analysts have welcomed the Interior Ministry's response, which comes at a time when many Moroccans hope the upcoming legislative elections will be fair and credible. Responding to questions in parliament recently, Interior Minister Chakib Benmoussa insisted that his department will not allow anyone to use state assets for election campaigning. "We know very well how to fulfil our responsibilities in this matter", he told deputies.

Omar Bahraoui is the chairman of Rabat City Council and a member of the political bureau of the Mouvement Populaire (MP), the largest party in the Moroccan parliament. Before being elected chairman of Rabat City Hall in the commune elections of 2003 he was chairman of the urban commune of Youssoufia in Rabat. He has also served as Wali Director General of Local Authorities at the Ministry of the Interior.