HIBAPRESS – Ayman Lamghaber
The shops of Souk Weld Amina, also known as Souk Al-Saada in the Hay Hassani district of Casablanca, have witnessed unusual activity in recent days after a number of traders and artisans began repair work on their commercial shops, despite the fact that the concerned authorities had rejected this request on more than one previous occasion.
Identical local sources confirmed that these repairs were carried out based on verbal permission, said to have come from an official in the local authorities in the area, which these sources considered a controversial step that could legally involve those concerned, if these works are considered a clear violation of the procedures in force.
While no official clarification has been issued regarding the reality of this "green light," field sources are wondering whether what is happening is a consecration of the logic of randomness and individual violations, or whether the verbal orders came in the context of serving a specific electoral or political agenda, especially since some link it to the deputy commissioner for the markets sector in the Hay Hassani district.
The question marks deepen when the file of the previous agreement, which was approved by both the Casablanca City Council and the Casablanca-Settat Regional Council, is invoked, which stipulated the repair of the Al-Saada markets (Weld Amina) and the Lissasfa commercial complex belonging to the district's territory.
This agreement, which was voted on some time ago, is still shrouded in ambiguity regarding its fate and the reasons for its non-activation to this day, even though it aimed to rehabilitate the markets according to an organized and legally framed concept.
The recent field visit made by the head of the Hay Hassani district, along with the deputy in charge of the markets and the Pasha of the region and the commander of the annex, also raised many questions, as some traders see it as an undeclared signal for the start of the repairs, while others see it as a normal inspection visit that does not entail any actual licensing.
In light of this ambiguity, the urgent question remains: Who actually gave the green light for these repairs?
And are we facing a legal violation and overlapping of powers, or just a misunderstanding that will be corrected soon?
The biggest bet today remains to clarify the position of the local and elected authorities, and to demonstrate the true path of the market repair agreement that the traders of the region have been waiting for for years, in order to avoid any new chaos or shared responsibilities that may negatively affect the reputation of the concerned institutions and the interests of citizens.
