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Rabat – Amid the acute indignation over the extensive bans on Skype, WhatsApp, Viber, and Facebook, most participants in the annual Maroc Web Awards (MWA) are withdrawing due to suspension VoiP services.
The three main telecom providers of Morocco (Maroc Telecom, Meditel, and Inwi), which are the contest’s sponsors, made the suspension effective on Friday.
The decisions to withdraw came after Maroc Telecom providers blocked all calls through VoiP services with WiFi connection.
The participants announced their withdrawal on Facebook, expressing their dismay towards the telecommunications triumvirate, which regard their consumers as “sheep.”.
Bilal Aljouhari, a Moroccan YouTuber who was a MWA nominee in the “Personality of the Year” category, announced his withdrawal on Facebook on Saturday. , “I can’t participate in a competition that is sponsored by companies that does not care for its consumers, and because of the their decision to ban VoiP services. This is some sort of sick joke,” he said.”
After Aljouhari, the withdrawals just kept coming. Marouane Lamharzi Alaoui, a Moroccan engineer, Carte.ma’s CEO, and nominee for the “Video of the Year,” announced his withdrawal on Facebook. He was nominated for his epic video entitled “From Sahara to the Sky.”
Alaoui apologized to his voters and organizers for not proceeding with the competition.
The engineer also suggested launching a campaign in order to file a lawsuit against ANRT, stating that the ban of the VoiP services is “illegal.”
Social media users launched a campaign to express their anger at the decision to block VoiP services by disliking the official pages of the telecom companies on Facebook.
24 hours after the campaign was launched, the number of the companys’ fans have been greatly reduced.
The number of Maroc Telecom’s fans decreased by 6.69 percent, or 163, 674 likes, Inwi 6.73 percent, or 137,364 likes, and Meditel by 5.84 percent, or 128,415 likes.
The Maroc Web Awards is considered the biggest competition involving the creative talent of youth in the MENA region. Its goal is to promote digital arts and creativity.
