Rabat – Casablanca police have recorded 118 violations in tourism establishments in one week, as part of their strict implementation of measures against the spread of COVID-19.
Spokesperson of the General Directorate of National Security (DGSN) Boubker Sabik said on Tuesday that the police of Casablanca undertook several enforcement operations, including 54 raids during one week in hotels and other tourism establishments, resulting in the discovery of legal violations and criminal acts.
Sabik added that security services submitted the violators for investigation by the judicial police, before presenting them to the prosecutor’s office.
The announcement took place today during a press conference at the police headquarters in Casablanca.
The official said that his administration “gave firm orders as to the strict application of legal and organizational provisions relating to tourist units.”
These instructions, according to the spokesperson, aim to preserve the health of citizens and guarantee the proper implementation of the regulations governing the operation of hotels, restaurants, cafes, and other tourism establishments.
The official also mentioned the rigorous application of the provisions of the law relating to the entry and stay of foreigners in Morocco.
Sabik said that DGSN pledges the continuity of control operations among tourism establishments, whether relating to the regulations governing their operation or the provisions of the state of health emergency.
Besides COVID-19 sanitary infractions, the police of Casablanca also found 49 restaurants illegally selling alcoholic beverages and 117 cafes, mostly in the area of Ain Diab.
Police put the manager of a hotel in custody on Monday, after the seizure of 108 falsified tax stamps, 22 corks sealed with a false customs stamp, 11 bottles of contraband alcohol, and more.
Morocco’s Head of Government Saad Eddine El Othmani said on June 16 that the second deconfinement phase would help to revive the tourism sector, which accounts for 11% of the country’s GDP. It allowed for the reopening establishments to serve domestic tourism across Morocco, including in Casablanca.
On May 5, Morocco’s Minister of Tourism, Nadia Fettah Alaoui, said 87% of hotels in Morocco had shut down due to the COVID-19 crisis.
