Three women lead the pack in pursuit of the top elected jobs in Anfa and the city of Casablanca. The parties - Istiqlal, the PJD, and the National Rally of Independents - have all named strong women candidates to the top of their general electoral lists.
In the municipality of Anfa, Casablanca's largest district, the communal elections have taken on a feminine character. Three major parties have nominated women at the top of their main electoral lists, in addition to the lists reserved for female candidates.
Each of the three is a real contender in the contest for the presidency of the Anfa municipality and the subsequent election of Casablanca mayor.
Minister of Health Yasmina Baddou, head of the list of Istiqlal Party in the municipality of Anfa, is open about her ambitions to win in the elections, and that she aims ultimately for the mayor's position in Casablanca.
Baddou - the incumbent President of the Anfa municipality - has a strong chance of repeating her 2003 victory.
"I have achieved quite a lot during my six years as municipality president," she said. "The citizens are aware of it, and the proof is that I won the biggest number of votes in this constituency during the last legislative election that was held in September 2007, and with a comfortable difference of 4,000 votes from the runner up."
This time, however, she will face strong competition from MP Bassima Hakkaoui of the Justice and Development Party (PJD).
The PJD did not field a candidate in Anfa in the 2003 or 2007 elections, so this year it will be the main focus of their electoral campaign.
Hakkaoui spoke with Magharebia about her impressions of citizens' needs. "I sometimes feel greatly disappointed because of the amount of despair and indifference that I see in young people, and the very negative image they have of elected officials."
Nevertheless, she said, "[I] feel warm and full of hope when I meet citizens who are aware of what's taking place and of the enormity of responsibility they shoulder as voters. In Morocco, we need a lot of serious work from all the parties involved in politics so as to regain credibility and trust."
The third competitor, Mbarka Bouaida from the National Rally of Independents, is the youngest MP in the Moroccan House of Representatives. She said she depends on support of youth and women. "My slogan in this election is closeness to citizens and hearing their problems and involving them in the discussion and proposal of solutions."
Regardless of who wins the presidency of the municipality of Anfa, the mission will not be easy. The needs are great in the district, which is considered the central hub of Casablanca.
To the minds of many Moroccans, the name Anfa means luxury and refined, cosmopolitan living. However, most Moroccans do not know that the area, extending along the Atlantic between the port of Casablanca and the Aïn Diab shore, also suffers widespread poverty.
According to the High Commissioner for Planning (HCP), 20% of Anfa residents live in shantytowns. It has therefore the second highest concentration of slum residents by percentage, after the Sidi Moumen quarter, home of the terrorists who perpetrated the 2003 Casablanca attacks.
Despite these statistics, Anfa has yet to benefit from any of the government's anti-shantytown programmes. Consequently, it is expected to overtake Sidi Moumen once the residents of that district are relocated into formal housing in the coming months.
The municipality of Anfa is characterised by social contradictions. There are also many shantytowns hidden between residential buildings near the Hassan II Mosque, and in the neighbourhoods of El Onk and Bourgogne. In the Aïn Diab area, where the most elegant villas in Morocco are located, there are also seven shantytowns that are considered among the poorest and most marginalised in Morocco.
By Mawassi Lahcen for Magharebia in Casablanca
© Magharebia.com 2009
