The government is receiving complaints from people who have not received stipends, and El Othmani vowed authorities will address all complaints.
Rabat – Morocco is still in the “second phase” of the COVID-19 outbreak, and the country is proud of the effectiveness of its preventive measures, Head of Government Saad Eddine El Othmani said on Monday.
During a Parliament session, El Othmani gave a lengthy speech before announcing Morocco will extend the lockdown for three more weeks until June 10.
“I keep monitoring the data personally due to the priority the government is giving the situation,” El Othmani said.
Thanking citizens for their help and for abiding by the COVID-19 lockdown, El Othmani argued the state of emergency and social distancing helped the country avoid the worst outcomes.
He explained Morocco is still in the outbreak’s second phase, which began on March 30 when total cases surpassed 500, in contrast to several other powerful countries that are experiencing the rapid spread of the pandemic.
The preventive measures helped the country to avoid 600 new cases and 200 deaths daily, El Othmani said.
“We want to thank all forces in all fields helping to fight COVID-19, including health professionals, military, gendarmeries, civil protection, and national security” for their efforts.
The senior official acknowledged that people are confused due to the unprecedented situation.
“The whole world is attempting to find answers to the development of the pandemic. Most of the questions still do not have answers. But we are learning lessons from this,” he explained.
El Othmani acknowledged that battling COVID-19 and its impact is not easy.
To fight the pandemic, Morocco introduced several special committees, including medical, economic, and security commissions, to manage the development of the pandemic and its impact.
He said that the country used three mechanisms to tackle the situation: Transparency, communication, and proactivity.
“We have been transparent, and we have been committed to transparency during the pandemic in favor of all citizens, informing them of all data and information regarding the pandemic,” he said.
Government institutions have provided regular communication through press releases and data to inform all citizens of COVID-19 updates.
The government introduced hundreds of measures in the last few months, El Othmani said, including health system upgrades, ensuring market supply, remote education, and administration actions.
The head of government also recalled the government’s decision to introduce stipends for people affected by the crisis, in addition to support for struggling businesses.
El Othmani acknowledged that the country has received complaints from people who did not receive stipends.
“We are receiving complaints, and we welcome all the complaints and communications. We are attempting to address all of them,” he vowed.
Many complaints came from people who said they should benefit from stipends but have not.
“People who think they should receive stipends and they have not yet, please send your complaints, and we will try to address them as soon as possible,” El Othmani said.
Morocco’s Special Fund for the Management and Response to COVID-19 is financing stipends for informal workers or people whose work was suspended due to COVID-19.
King Mohammed VI ordered the creation of the fund on March 15.
The head of government acknowledged the hardship of the lockdown but said the government is aware that taking any risk would put people in danger.
“I know what people think and I know that a lot of people are tired of the COVID-19 lockdown for two months. We spent Ramadan with the mosque closed. The situation is under control but not fully promising,” El Othmani explained.
Read also: Reflections on COVID-19 in Morocco and Steps for Reform
