Morocco’s Brotherhood party on edge amid series of resignations

Sara Rashad

The noose gets tighter around the branch of the Muslim Brotherhood in Morocco, namely the Justice and Development Party, day after day.

This comes amid expectations that the party’s popularity will decline. Observers expect this to have its toll on the results of the next parliamentary elections, slated for September 2021.

Resignations are also rocking the Justice and Development Party.

Prominent party leader and minister of state in charge of human rights affairs and relations with parliament, Mustafa Ramid, resigned recently from the party.

Hit hard

Ramid’s resignation compounds the other crises that had befallen the party in the part period. These crises included a series of resignations by other party prominent members. The Justice and Development Party also came under fire for approving the normalization of relations with Israel.

Party Secretary-General, Saad-Eddine El Othmani, who doubles as Morocco’s prime minister, issued a statement recently in an attempt to rescue the party’s falling reputation.

He called on Ramid to rethink his resignation and keep carrying out his missions inside the party.

Ramid needs to stay and help the party carry out its reformist mission in Morocco, El Othmani wrote in the statement.

Successive crises

Ramid’s resignation was not the first to hit the Justice and Development Party in recent days.

According to Moroccan media, this resignation came after a spat between Ramid and El Othmani against the background of monopoly imposed by the party’s secretary-general on decision-making inside it.

His resignation opened the door for a high wave of resignations inside the party.

These resignations included one submitted by Etimad Al-Zahidi, a renowned party lawmaker and leader. After walking out of the party, Al-Zahidi deepened everybody’s shock by joining the National Rally of Independents, a staunch opponent of the Justice and Development Party.