HIBAPRESS – Mohammed Zariouh
The ordinary session of the Nador municipality council, held on Tuesday evening, witnessed a tense atmosphere marked by verbal altercations and chaos inside the meeting hall, after councilor Hafida Harkach, belonging to the Istiqlal party, sparked widespread controversy by rejecting financial support directed to an association caring for cancer patients.
During her intervention, Harkach expressed her objection to allocating a sum of money to the "Taaouzor for Cancer Patients" association, considering that the association is not fulfilling its role as it should, and that it does not deserve public support, demanding a review of the criteria for distributing support to local associations. The councilor's statements triggered a wave of angry responses from a number of members, including the council president and councilors from different political orientations, who considered her position unjustified and related to previous personal disputes, while confirming that the concerned association plays an important humanitarian role for the benefit of cancer patients in the region. As the intensity of the discussion escalated, the session turned into a state of chaos, interspersed with verbal clashes between a number of members, before things developed into an unusual behavior when the independence councilor broke one of the chairs of the meeting hall, which some attendees considered an attack on the municipality's property. In a related context, civil and political figures expressed their dissatisfaction with the way the grants were distributed, considering that the process was marred by a lot of "favoritism and clientelism," where clear and transparent standards were absent in allocating support, which angered a number of associations that did not benefit despite their field activity. These voices demanded that the Ministry of Interior open an urgent investigation and intervene to stop what they described as "laxity in the management of public money." Despite the tense atmosphere, the council approved during the same session to support the "Taaouzor for Cancer Patients" association with an amount of 33 million centimes, in addition to 80 million centimes for the "Social Solidarity" association, and 27 million centimes for the "Youth of Good for Social Solidarity" association. It is expected that the repercussions of this session will continue in the coming days, in light of the escalating demands to review the mechanisms for distributing public support, and to ensure its link with transparency, efficiency, and serving the public good.
