HIBAPRESS – Rabat
Former Minister Aziz Rabbah issued a statement addressed to the public today, Thursday, January 20, 2025, in which he expressed his displeasure with what he described as "media fraud" practiced by some platforms in covering a Spanish investigation related to potential interventions in favor of Spanish companies.
Rabbah said that some media outlets distorted the content of the original report with the aim of "directing arrows at him personally" through headlines that he described as "misleading and sensational." Rabbah explained that the Spanish investigation concerns a number of intermediaries there who sought to influence Spanish ministers in favor of companies wishing to access the markets of different countries, including Morocco. He stressed that the report itself confirms that the Moroccan ministers are not concerned with the investigation and are not accused, but some platforms —as he said— chose to focus on his name through headlines such as: "Two Moroccan Ministers at the Heart of a Scandal in Spain" and "Rabbah and Amara at the heart of a Spanish investigation", considering that this behavior is a "deliberate bias" and "distortion for non-professional purposes". Rabbah's clarifications about the visit of the Spanish delegation and infrastructure projects. In the course of refuting what he considered "fallacies," Rabbah affirmed that the visit mentioned in the report was an official visit through diplomatic channels, which included meetings with the head of government and five ministers, not just two ministers, and that Spanish companies were interested in several infrastructure projects, including the high-speed train project, not just the port of Kenitra. He added that the port of Kenitra was officially postponed in 2015 by a government decision and not by a ministerial decision, as it is a strategic project, highlighting that the reception of ministers and heads of public institutions for foreign investors "is normal and well-known". He also considered that what was published about "handing over the phone numbers of Moroccan ministers" to Spanish parties has no value, stressing that these numbers are originally available and that communication between officials takes place formally and periodically. Rabbah: My path proves my support for Moroccan companies. Rabbah pointed out that his path in the Ministry of Equipment was distinguished by prioritizing "national preference" in public deals, which led to an increase in the share of Moroccan companies from 37% to more than 90%. He added that he left the ministry two years before the events mentioned in the investigation, and therefore he no longer had any role in managing the projects during that period. He stressed that major infrastructure projects —such as the ports of Dakhla and Nador— were won by Moroccan companies or groups led by national companies, and that the procedures of the deals are not affected by the visits of foreign delegations. "Fraud will not change the truth." Rabbah held some platforms responsible for "deleting" or "marginalizing" the sentence that confirms that the Moroccan ministers are not concerned with the investigation, considering that a "violation of the principles and ethics of journalism," stressing that the aim of the published articles is "abuse" and "deliberate distortion". He concluded his statement by saying that attempts at media misinformation "will not obscure the real files that occupy public opinion," while thanking a media platform that withdrew its article "after it became clear to it the size of the fraud contained in it." He added: "And if they return, we will return."
