Morocco’s Interior Ministry has launched a sweeping investigation into local councils accused of misusing temporary jobs to favor allies and relatives.
Sources told Hespress Ar that the probe, led by the ministry’s Directorate of Skills Development and Digital Transformation, is focusing on how some council presidents filled day labor and short-term positions outside legal guidelines.
Instead of addressing urgent shortages in technical staff such as engineers, IT specialists, and maintenance workers, several officials allegedly turned these jobs into tools of political patronage.
Reports from regional authorities flagged serious gaps in technical expertise across many councils.
But instead of organizing competitive recruitment, as instructed in earlier ministerial circulars, some presidents reportedly expanded the hiring of casual workers, allowing their close supporters to dominate municipal departments and even override official staff.
Investigators are also checking whether these practices breached a 2009 directive that restricts temporary contracts and links them to specific, time-bound needs.
Minister of Interior Abdelouafi Laftit had previously urged governors to update him with detailed reports on the number and cost of such workers, amid concerns they were being used for political and electoral gain.
According to the same sources, some casual workers were granted access to state vehicles and decision-making within councils, while others, linked by family ties to elected members, secured permanent roles.
These findings raised red flags about public budgets being drained to maintain what critics describe as “electoral reservoirs.”
The Interior Ministry is expected to expand its review in the coming weeks, with officials hinting at possible disciplinary action against council presidents found to have abused hiring powers.
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