• Profile Aziz Akhanuch, the richest man in Morocco, with the permission of the king, and winner of the elections

  • Elections Morocco changes the cycle with the defeat of the Islamists after a decade in government

The King of Morocco,

Mohamed VI

, appointed businessman

Aziz Akhanuch

as head of government on

Friday

and entrusted him with the formation of a new executive after the victory of his formation, the

National Group of Independents

, in the legislative elections.

The monarch "received Aziz Akhanuch (...) at the Royal Palace of Fez on Friday, September 10, 2021, whom the sovereign appointed head of government and entrusted him with the formation of a new government," said the crown in a release.

The Liberal-oriented National Group of Independents (RNI) was the party with the most votes in Wednesday's elections, in which the Islamist group

PJD

, which presided over the government, suffered a debacle.

The RNI

achieved 102 of the 395 deputies

of the Moroccan Parliament, which represented "a victory for democracy", according to its leader.

Akhanuch, who has one of the largest fortunes in the country, served as Minister of Agriculture since 2007 and has led its training since 2016.

His party is known for its

close ties to the monarchy

and in the last two decades he was part of virtually all government coalitions, except between 2012 and 2013.

Akhanuch chairs the Akwa Group company

, present in the real estate and hydrocarbons sector, and is perceived as a paradigmatic example of collusion between business and political elites.

The triumph of this liberal candidate took place in an election marked by the

fall of the Islamists of the PJD

, in power for a decade and that went from 125 to only 12 representatives.

The Islamists

denounced "serious irregularities"

in the process, including the "obscene distribution of money" near the voting centers.

Some accusations denied by the Ministry of the Interior.

For the first time, the 18 million Moroccan voters elected the 395 national deputies, as well as municipal and regional representatives, on the same day.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

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