Morocco’s Interior Ministry has issued strict new directives to governors and regional officials, ordering them to ensure municipal buses, ambulances and other publicly owned vehicles are used strictly for their intended purposes, according to officials familiar with the matter.
The move comes in response to reports from provincial authorities warning that municipal vehicles were being exploited for early electioneering, the sources told Hespress AR. The ministry stressed that all vehicles must carry official markings identifying the institutions that operate them to allow closer monitoring and prevent unauthorized use.
The directives also apply to vehicles provided by provincial councils to municipalities but managed by local associations. Investigations found that some mayors and political figures were using ambulances and school buses for political activities, in violation of Law 113.14 governing local councils.
Some associations linked to current or former elected officials allegedly converted school buses into private transport for paid leisure trips, including to popular destinations such as Oualidia, Sidi Bouzid and Moulay Yacoub.
According to the reports, association leaders collected cash from sitting politicians and potential candidates to cover fuel, food and lodging for organized trips lasting up to three days. Inspectors also flagged associations suspected of serving political agendas in previous audits across several regions, particularly Casablanca-Settat.
Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit instructed regional governors to clamp down on all forms of misuse of public resources for political gain. Reports cited delays in development projects, including electrification, potable water connections, and the construction of student dormitories and social care centers, that were completed only as elections approached.
The reports further noted conflicts of interest, with some municipal council members linked by family ties to association leaders who benefit from school transport contracts and municipal subsidies. Other former elected officials were described as local brokers mobilizing votes through control of community resources.
Local officials are expected to rely on updated field reports from local administrators and community leaders to track the use of municipal vehicles and prevent their diversion to personal or political purposes.
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