Rabat – The Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) has upheld its position to not participate in the government coalition, following a meeting on Tuesday between PAM Secretary General Ilyass ELomari and newly-appointed Head of Government Saad Eddine Othmani.
The PAM released a communiqué after a meeting held by its political bureau on Wednesday, repeating the position they had previously expressed on October 8, a day after the legislative elections, in which they secured 102 parliamentary seats out of 395.
“The political bureau of the PAM stressed their determination to uphold their position, which is to be in the opposition government. This was endorsed by the National Council of the PAM during its extraordinary session in January,” the PAM said on Wednesday.
During a press conference held after the end of his meeting with Othmani, Elomari said that “negotiations with Othmani remain at a standstill,” noting that the PAM still upholds the position that he voiced after the elections, to join the government opposition.
Elomari, who was accompanied by Fatima Zahra El Mansouri, the president of PAM’s National Council, praised his counterpart’s openness to other parties regardless of their ideological orientations.
On Tuesday morning, Othmani embarked on his negotiations with other party leaders after King Mohammed VI gave him 15 days to form a government coalition.
So far, Othmani has met with Aziz Akhannouch, the Secretary General of the National Rally of Independents Party (RNI), a delegation from the Istiqlal Party (PI), Idriss Lachgar, Secretary General of the Socialist Union of Popular Forces (USFP), and Mohamed Nabil Benabdallah, Secretary General of the Progress and Socialism Party (PPS).
