Morocco requires additional efforts in order for it to steer clear of pitfalls. The government requires an extra measure of patience and self-control so as not to derail from its path, or become preoccupied with marginal issues while navigating treacherous roads. Similarly, the opposition is in need of similar doses of prudence to avoid matters going out of control. To be sure, the primary source of concern is not the escalation of disputes, in which both lawful and unlawful means may be used, but is rather the lack of a guiding compass, as the many voices clamor, and the sound objectives are lost. In this sense, the political exploitation of the incident where the youths of the Justice and Development party (JDP) were banned from staging a demonstration in Tangier has gone too far. This portends to undermine accord in the cabinet, with the situation now open to all possibilities, including even dragging the Royal Institution to a partisan conflict, instead of seeking to rein in any dispute that may go out of bound, as it supposed to do. Furthermore, the government, particularly in what concerns the JDP which has voices both within and outside the executive branch, is openly stating that there are some who have been planting mines along its path. This has happened as some in the opposition are no longer interested in merely tracking the government's mistakes, but has now rushed in the direction of declaring war against one of its core components – that is, the JDP. The JDP may have erred in monopolizing the front rows in government, as its ministers championed many controversial initiatives. Here, the prime minister might have angered his political foes by overly invoking the Arab Spring that has yet to end, as it seems that he continues to use the discourse that is more befitting of the opposition. Yet this does not invalidate the fact that his presence in government was not the result of a settlement, but was decided by the ballot boxes – albeit the latter have imposed upon him a political coexistence as part of a coalition that reduced his ability to alone dictate the agenda. Perhaps if he had postponed accepting appointment to government to the next round of elections, then the equation would have differed greatly. But did the situation in the country allow that? In the history of the experiences of the rotation of power, the opposition relies on a shadow government whose function is to monitor mistakes. But the opposition nonetheless lets the executive branch handle issues and policies, pursuant to an approach that safeguards the distribution of political roles. In the event the failure of the executive branch becomes clear, the established democratic mechanisms are activated to remove governments through a no-confidence vote. Yet resorting to this weapon does not usually take place in the first weeks or months of a government's life cycle, except in the event of severe crises. With few exceptions, Morocco is no longer a hotbed of cyclical government crises. Morocco was helped in overcoming these shakeups by the fact that the leaders of political parties now play a larger role in forming cabinets, as technocratic governments was gradually abandoned as the solution usually sought when political accord was not possible. Moroccans examining their past, like a driver checking for hazards on the road, believe that the current government is closest in form to the second iteration of al-Tanawob [the formula for power rotation in Morocco] government of 1998. But the previous experience had enjoyed near-unanimous support, much like a blank check, including by the JDP itself, which had supported the government of Abdul-Rahman al-Youssefi, but without taking part in it. So what happened to make the equation deteriorate into tension that has almost paralyzed everyone, including the government and the opposition equally? Well, learning to walk together in the first year of marriage requires listening out for thoughts and identifying each other's attitudes. Ultimately, the government of Benkirane will not be alone the subject of attack, if its concerns splinter into efforts to respond to its critiques, and managing public affairs simultaneously. A wager of this magnitude requires a new accord, or at least a commitment by all parties to safeguard the democratic process, regardless of who is leading the government. For one thing, the public who have placed their trust in the ruling coalition are alone eligible to retract said confidence, through the ballot boxes. Running out of patience does not usually happen because many challenges have accumulated, but rather because these challenges have been overlooked, in favor of small marginal battles. Patience, the essence of what is possible to achieve amid the constraints of the impossible, thus runs out and blights minds and wills – and never because people were conceived in petulance.
