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Rabat – Fouzi Lekjaa has been appointed chairman of the Committee in charge of Morocco’s bid to host the 2030 FIFA World Cup, along with Spain and Portugal. This responsibility will be added on top of his other roles, namely president of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) and Minister delegate in charge of the national budget. Lekjaa is a competent man, as has been shown time and time again and as further proven by the constant hatred he receives from Algerian officials. But spreading out one’s work too thinly can hinder the outcome.
During Morocco’s previous application for the 2018 World Cup bid, which ended up taking place in Russia, the Moroccan committee was led by a different minister. Moulay Hafid Elalamy, the minister of Industry and Commerce, with Fouzi Lekjaa, AOB. He acted in his capacity as the former president of the FRMF.
Let us take a leap over the Atlantic to meet a man named Laurence Peter, who gave his name to an eponymous principle. According to the ‘Peter Principle,’ one can continue performing well in their job, taking on more tasks that get increasingly complex, until they reach a plateau where they can no longer improve. In other words, a path where success leads to failure This does not indicate the existence of an inherent lack of competence due to the insufficient knowledge and experience. Instead, it is incompetence caused by an accumulation of tasks and a lack of sufficient time to complete all of them—an early and detrimental burnout for the group.
Lekjaa, in his capacity as the minister of the national budget (in addition to his other functions), has to manage the meager budget of a kingdom with a thousand expensive ambitions. He must therefore acquire money that is either non-existent or rapidly running out, taken from the treasuries of companies and the pockets of taxpayers. Consequently, he has to deal with severe scarcity. Lekjaa is also the president of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, with a team that has given it their all and, consequently, is expected to deliver the most. From committee to commission, from meetings to symposiums, from team meetings to field visits, the minister-president will have to find time, from what little he has left, to meet the Spanish and Portuguese. We wish him the best of luck, with a reserved nervousness, because failure is not an option in the position he occupies.
Why mention all of this? Ever since he took to the public, Lekjaa has been successful, reassuring the public through his competence and willingness to communicate, with a unique outspokenness for the country; it is admittedly a cautious one, but an outspokenness nonetheless. However, the very little time and overwhelming pressure he is under have led him to make mistakes.
As happened in October in 2022, while he was defending the finance bill full steam, he openly announced the removal of gas subsidies in 2023. This has created a resounding and national “What?”, followed by a very angry “are you out of your mind?” from the people. What followed was a whirlwind of comments, loud protests, and a big controversy that was only extinguished by the interference of the finance minister a few days later, who canceled the proposal and announced, loud and clear, that there will be no removal of gas subsidies in 2023. Even the very tough Lekjaa, as tough as a communist-era Lada, had to retract his statement due to this major lapse of judgment, lack of communication, and political acumen.
A month later, on December 20, 2022, following the Qatar tickets scandal, Lekjaa arrived at the federation with a distasteful look on his face, wherein he gathered his executive committee to deliver a stern word about the misdeeds of some “beggarly” individuals, who would be banned from getting involved with football indefinitely. He emphasized that the rule of law would prevail over all these unprincipled individuals, regardless of their rank or position. Hooray. Then nothing more, until a few months later, when the names of the two scapegoats, who are well-known in their circles and even on the national level, were revealed. They were scapegoats nonetheless compared to the names that were on the minds and lips of the masses. Lekjaa was still willing to communicate; however, there was nothing to say. This was not due to a lack of time or knowledge, but undoubtedly due to a lack of coordination, direction, and, possibly, even instructions.
Nowadays, a new challenge awaits Fouzi Lekjaa, well-known for his elite-level sports negotiation skills both at the CAF, where he is an influential member and even kingmaker, and at FIFA, where he nurtures strong ambitions. These skills will do him a lot of good when dealing with the Spanish and Portuguese; Europeans who usually have ulterior motives outside of football; Africans and Latin Americans whose pockets have been properly greased up by our Algerian friends; and Saudis who are too preoccupied by their own goals and who do not really matter…
By juggling all of these responsibilities, Lekjaa is both a full-time minister and a full-time president of the federation at once, in addition to his role in the CAF, to name a few. Always on the go, he will have to put his principles into action while avoiding succumbing to the Peter Principle, or at least delaying it for as long as possible. In the meantime, congratulations to Fouzi Lekjaa on his new role, and good luck to him.
