In a speech during the meeting of the Council of Government held by teleconference, El Otmani discussed the press release of the Royal office dated March 22, 2021, noting that the Sovereign received on Monday March 22, 2021 at the Royal Palace in Fez, Ahmed Rahhou whom HM the King appointed president of the Competition Council.

He recalled that HM the King ordered the transfer to the Head of Government of the recommendations of the ad-hoc Commission, charged by the Sovereign with carrying out the necessary investigations in the case in which the Competition Council was involved.

El Otmani said that these recommendations have been submitted, recalling the objective cited in the press release by the Royal Office: "in order to remedy the inaccuracies of the current legal framework, strengthen the impartiality and capacities of this constitutional institution and consolidate its vocation as an independent body contributing to fostering good governance, the rule of law in the economic sphere and consumer protection".

He said that he had instructed the Secretary General of the Government and the Minister of Economy, Finance and Administration Reform to work on the revision of Law No. 104.12 relating to free pricing and competition and of Law No. 20.13 relating to the Competition Council.

He also pledged to strive to put an end to this project in the near future to implement the content of these recommendations related to the legal aspect, stressing that consumer protection, protection of free pricing and the guarantee of fair competition are an essential part in the economy.

El Otmani also referred to the epidemiological situation in the Kingdom, which has recently experienced several developments including an increase in cases of contamination by new variants of the coronavirus, a slight increase in the number of critical cases and the continued receipt of additional vaccine doses. 

All these developments were closely followed by the various parties and authorities concerned, who called for an extension of the state of health emergency, and for additional decisions regarding air transport, he added, stressing the importance of remaining vigilant and respecting individual and collective health measures.

The Minister of Health presented to members of the government the most important developments in the epidemiological situation in the country during the last two weeks, marked by a surge in cases, especially in the region of Casablanca-Settat. This region alone represents 50% of the cases currently recorded at the national level.

The rate of positive cases recorded in this region stands at 12% against a national average of 4.2%, while the number of cases with the new variants has increased considerably. Thus, 73 cases affected by the British variant were detected by the Moroccan Coalition for Genomic Watch.

Faced with this worrying situation, El Otmani indicated that the government will continue its consultations with the National Scientific Committee and with all the sectors concerned to take all the necessary and adequate measures, especially during the holy month of Ramadan, in order to preserve the health and safety of citizens, while taking into account the economic situation.

These measures will be announced by the government, at the right time, and everything that has been spread on this subject is untrue and baseless, he stressed.