HM the King addresses a speech to Parliament on the occasion of the opening of the 1st session of the 3rd legislative year of the 11th Legislature (full text) – Media7

Friday, October 13, 2023 at 4:44 p.m.

Rabat – His Majesty King Mohammed VI, may God help him, accompanied by HRH Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan and HRH Prince Moulay Rachid, addressed, on Friday, a speech to Parliament on the occasion of the opening of the 1st session of the 3rd legislative year of the 11th Legislature.

Here is the full text of the Royal Speech:
“Praise to God,

Peace and blessings be upon the Prophet, His Family and His Companions.
Ladies and Gentlemen, honorable parliamentarians,

It is by the will of the Most High that a terrible earthquake shook our country, leaving thousands of martyrs and many injured for whose recovery we raise fervent prayers.

The ordeal was terrible and the pain immeasurable. From Tangier to Lagouira, from East to West, all of us, King and people, were deeply bruised. In fact, God has ruled in His Holy Book: “Nothing will reach us except what Allah has ordained for us.” True is the word of the Lord.

We therefore appeal to the Most High so that the earth no longer begins to tremble under the feet of His defenseless creatures, who humbly implore His infinite mercy.

If every earthquake inevitably brings its share of destruction, we are driven by the firm desire to act to rebuild.

Therefore, We insist on the need to continue to provide aid and assistance to affected families, to quickly undertake the upgrading and reconstruction of affected areas, and to provide them with basic services.

Notwithstanding the scale of the disaster, grief and pain gave way to comfort and pride in seeing the sincerity and spontaneity with which all Moroccans here and elsewhere as well as civil society actors demonstrated in a thousand ways the spirit of mutual aid and solidarity which animates them towards their stricken compatriots.

We also salute the Royal Armed Forces, the various Security Forces, government departments and the Territorial Administration for their sacrifices in providing relief and assistance to the populations of the affected areas.

We also take the opportunity to thank once again the brotherly and friendly countries which, during this difficult ordeal, have shown solidarity and assistance towards the Moroccan people.
Ladies and gentlemen,

This drama provides a valuable lesson: the authentic values ​​of the Moroccan soul have prevailed, the very ones which have always enabled our country to overcome crises and adversities and which constantly reinforce us in our determination to continue our march with confidence and optimism.

This beautiful spirit and this noble ideal inhabit us all because they represent, for Us, the ferments of unity and cohesion of Moroccan society.

Enshrined in the Constitution, these national values ​​bring together all the constituent elements of authentic Moroccan identity and weave a link of openness and harmony with universal ideals.

We emphasize more specifically the founding values ​​of the unified national identity:

-First: religious and spiritual values. Chief among these are the foundations of the Sunni Maliki rite which is essentially based on the notion of Commandery of the believers and which advocates the golden mean, moderation and openness to the Other, tolerance and interreligious coexistence and intercivilizational.

With this reference, Morocco asserts itself today as a successful model of living together, where Moroccans, Muslims and Jews, cultivate cordial understanding and respect towards other religions and cultures.

-Second: the national values ​​which form the basis of the Moroccan Nation and of which the Monarchy is the keystone. Indeed, thanks to the unanimous support of Moroccans, the monarchical institution has always had the primary vocation of unifying and bringing together all the components of the Moroccan people. In fact, it draws its essence from the strong symbiosis and the bonds of mutual allegiance which unite the Throne and the people.

Furthermore, the Moroccan Nation was irreversibly forged around love of the homeland and unanimous attachment to national unity and the territorial integrity of the country. These immutable values ​​bring together Moroccans and aggregate in the same matrix all the tributaries of the national identity, unified and rich in its diversity.

-Third: the values ​​of solidarity and inter-category, inter-generational and inter-regional social cohesion, the very values ​​in the name of which Moroccans are indissolubly united by a remarkable esprit de corps.

We therefore call on everyone to remain firmly attached to these values ​​which contribute to the consolidation of national unity and family cohesion, the preservation of human dignity, and the strengthening of social justice.

We are all the more strongly committed to this as the world is today undergoing profound and accelerated changes which have led to a significant decline in value systems and benchmarks, and sometimes even to their outright abandonment.
Ladies and gentlemen,

The letter that We sent to the head of government to initiate the revision of the Family Code (the Moudawana), is inspired by these national values ​​which place the family and family ties in the sphere of the sacred.

The family being the basic unit of society according to the terms of the Constitution, we always ensure that favorable conditions are created to strengthen its cohesion.

Indeed, a healthy society is built on the foundation of a healthy and balanced family. Correlatively, if the family disintegrates, society inevitably loses its compass.

This is why We have always wanted to protect the family, by launching major projects and major reforms in its favor.

Let us cite in particular the project of generalization of social protection which constitutes, for Us, an essential pillar of our societal and development model.

Furthermore, with God’s help, we will proceed to operationalize the direct social assistance program at the end of the year.

Realizing the values ​​of social solidarity that Moroccans carry in their DNA, we have decided not to limit this system to family allowances alone, ensuring that certain needy segments of society also benefit.

This support program is intended for school-age children, children with disabilities and newborns. In addition, it is dedicated to poor families and those in precarious situations, without children of school age, more particularly to households caring for elderly people.

Thanks to its direct impact on targeted families, this program will raise their standard of living, combat poverty and insecurity and, ultimately, improve social and human development indicators.

In fact, society becomes more productive and more enterprising when it is more united and better protected in the face of emergencies and economic fluctuations.

In this regard, We have directed the government so that this program is implemented according to a global vision and in accordance with the provisions of the framework law relating to social protection, approved by Parliament.

Its operationalization must be done gradually, taking into account the evolution of allocated credits and setting the optimal level of coverage, the amounts of financial transfers as well as the methods of their management.

The implementation of this program must be a model of success and must, therefore, be supported by the targeting system of the Unified Social Register (RSU) and take full advantage of the effectiveness of new technologies.

In this context, we insist on strict compliance with the principles of solidarity, transparency and fairness in the allocation of aid, particularly for the benefit of those who deserve it.

Furthermore, We call on the government to prioritize the streamlining of existing social assistance programs and ensuring their effectiveness as well as the sustainability of funding resources.

We also insist that good governance of this project, addressed in all its dimensions, be ensured. To do this, an ad-hoc monitoring and evaluation mechanism must be put in place, so that the best conditions for development and continuous adjustment are guaranteed.

As you know, Ladies and Gentlemen, Parliament has a role to play in the dissemination and realization of these ancestral values ​​and in the implementation of large-scale projects and reforms.

To do this, you must remain constantly vigilant and mobilized in order to defend the Causes of the Nation and its higher interests.

To conclude, there is nothing better than a verse from the Holy Quran where God decrees: “And they will say: Praise be to Allah who has removed affliction from us. Our Lord is certainly Generous in forgiveness and Grateful”. True is the word of God.
Wassalamou alaikoum warahmatoullahi wabarakatouh”.