Rabat – Since last weekend, some PJD members have increasingly taken to social media to call for a sit-in outside of the party’s headquarters to “protect the results of October 7th election,” and to protest against the “latest party’s concession.”
The call for a sit-in, expected next Thursday, is gaining in influence and sympathy, particularly among members of the PJD’s Chabiba (Youth’s section). This has pushed the party’s General Secretary, Abdelilah Benkirane, to intervene.
As a result of this virtual movement, Benkirane has issued an “Orientation,” published on Monday by the party’s mouth piece, PJD.ma.
“Abdelilah Benkirane exhorts all party members and sympathizers to refrain completely from participation to this sit-in in, nor any other similar form of contestation, whatever are their noble concerns,” reports pjd.ma.
Benkirane also calls on “vigilance under the particular current circumstances that we can overcome if we stay committed to the fundamentals of our party.”
A few hours before this statement, General Manager of the PJD, Andelhaq Larbi, gave an interview to PJD.ma in which he stressed that the party could not be threatened by a split.
“Our slogan in PJD is that the opinion is free and decision is binding. In our party, every one could express his opinion freely. And this is often misunderstood by some media that confuses PJD with other Party that cannot manage the diversity of Opinion.”
He added that “Protesters are not calling for the PJD’s leading board. They are only asking to open an internal debate which will be held within the national council if the quorum is reached to hold a session.”
Early Disappointment
Immediately after the announcment of the new government compositionm disappointment could be felt among PJD members.
Abdelali Hamidine, member of the General Secretariat of the party (the executive body), posted on Facebook that “the government is not a result of a coalition between free and independent political parties, and is not a culmination of compromises between these parties, and is not even a result of ‘free-will bargains’ between political actors, but rather an expression of the reason of the strongest forced upon political parties with no independence.”
Strangely enough, another party member, Abdelaziz Sekkal, who assumes the presidency of the Region of Rabat-Kenitra, called for “the party to distance itself from the government” and to “start working on limiting the damage and preparing well for the next stage.”
The latter statement clearly shows how divided the PJD is over a government it is supposedly leading. Is this a cause for alarm concerning the party’s future?
