Casablanca — And all for 300 dirhams.
Casablanca — And all for 300 dirhams.
The vice president of the Harbil commune near Marrakech was sentenced to 7 months of prison for accepting a bribe of 300 dirhams in exchange for the signature of administrative documents, Al Massae reported on Tuesday, November 29.
Two citizens had reportedly seen the official in the act and subsequently filed a complaint with authorities, who then devised a plan to catch the official red-handed, adds Al Massae.
Upon his arrest, the case was subject to an investigation, which led to the official’s sentencing to 7 months in prison.
Cases similar to there are not a rare occurrence. In fact, a report on the prevalence of corruption in the MENA region released by Transparency International revealed that approximately 48 percent of Moroccans had admitted to bribe officials in an effort to ease access to public service.
The latest Corruption Perceptions Index also reported that Morocco lost eight ranks from 2014 to 2015, going from 80th to 88th place out of 168 countries. It is clear that corruption is a significant socio-political problem in Moroccan society.
The country, however, has recently taken serious steps to address the issue. On May 3, the government, in partnership with the National Anti-Corruption Commission (CNAC), released a National Anti-Corruption Strategy. The strategy, composed of 239 projects aimed at reducing corruption, was signed in a May ceremony in Rabat presided by Head of Government Abdellah Benkirane and Mohamed Moubdi, the Minister in charge of Public Service and the Modernization of Administration.
To put the strategy into effect, the government has committed to spending a total of 1.8 billion dirhams over the next 10 years in an effort to thoroughly reduce corruption and obtain a better grade in international corruption rankings.
