French pension row with Morocco set to worsen relations
A new row is looming between Morocco and France over a crackdown on Moroccans who have French residency but no longer live in the Republic.
The French government has posed a new obstacle for Moroccans, as it approves stringent measures regarding pension funds for residents of Moroccan nationality, according to Moroccan press. This unjust action against the Moroccan region’s citizens follows the obstacles in obtaining entry visas to its territory and will certainly worsen relations between Rabat and Paris.
French newspaper Le Parisien disclosed on June 3rd that the government plans to merge the Vital (Life) card and the ID card, which will be mandatory for residency lasting nine months in France to benefit from the pension system advantages.
The Accounts Court’s report indicates a need to improve performance. The report reveals that social fraud accounts for six to eight billion Euros annually while the administration struggles to recover just 1.6 billion Euros. Consequently, French Minister of Public Accounts Gabriel Attal is bolstering his tools to “change the scale,” as urged by the court.
For Rabat, the move and the narrative will be seen as a pretext to vex the Moroccan elite further as the obsession Macron has with Morocco since discovering being bugged by the latter with Israeli spy software, continues to reach new heights.
In reality though, France is cracking down on all pension fraud and is also carrying out similar measures with Algeria.
According to state-friendly Moroccan website Hespress, Attal has indirectly accused Moroccans and Algerians living in France of “committing fraud”. The French minister stated: “The French government will endeavour to halt fraudulent activities conducted by pensioners living outside of the European Union.” Attal promised to: “Take measures to verify whether these individuals are legally receiving their pensions.”
Citing information provided by Le Parisien as stated by Attal, up to eight billion Euros in social security funds go to residents outside of France, in an apparent reference to Moroccans of French nationality, considering this as: “An obvious act of fraud on the French Treasury.”
Hespress, which the Economist claims takes its editorial line directly from Morocco’s chief of security, quoted Omar Al-Morabito, a former mayor in France, criticising: “The recent French decision is inaccurate and carries a clear political tint.” He emphasised: “Despite these embezzlements, it would have been possible to adopt different measures, not random and significant decisions that deepen the identity of the dispute with Rabat.”
