The Moroccan prime minister does not hesitate to put his popularity and his party's authority at stake. Whenever Abdelilah Benkirane is faced with some reactions that he deems to be part of the pressure exerted against him by the anti-reform lobbies, he reverts to the use of terms indicating that he will proceed forward with the implementation of the reforms, even if these would affect the electoral bets of his party. He had recourse to a methodology of creating a shock, when he decided to raise the prices of fuel and the resulting repercussions that affected the purchase power of a wide group of citizens. He is also about to try the electroshock therapy policy in dealing with the files of retirement that no one ever dared to approach. He will likely also revert to the same methods when it comes to supporting the state's main consumables, thus exposing this file to explosion at any given moment. There are some red lines that impose a delay in dealing with the social file that is threatening the country's stability. However, the prime minister believes that only the early, preemptive reforms can guarantee stability. He is considering the millions of poor people who will benefit from the lifting of the subsidies through offering financial aid. However, for his estimates to be more useful and to include wider groups, a huge budget is required, one that cannot be created through good intentions alone. There are no alternatives to help the prime minister in choosing the best possible solutions. Indeed, he is no longer interested with diagnosing the problem, but rather concerned with finding urgent solutions to the chronic problems. He believes that the country will be facing a dark future if these problems were to proceed without any barriers. He is thus sounding the alarm bell for both the opposition and pro-government sides, since the atrocities of the crises and storms make no distinction between the different sides. This is probably the first time when the prime minister is being honest with the public about the extent of the challenges. He did that in order to set the right psychological and social atmosphere for the people to accept the rise in fuel prices. Some analyses indicated that he is sending messages to some voters' groups that will be benefitting from the financial support in return of canceling the prices of the basic consumables. However, the dark image that he painted - concerning the possibility that the financial resources of the retirement funds will run out – makes no distinction between the different groups. It however raises the alarm bell around the hushed-up files and issues that must now be urgently dealt with. Some opposition factions and even some of the prime minister's partners at the government coalition kept blaming him for not taking some major measures to match the big reform ambitions at the end of his first year in power. Some figures called on him to speed up the measures and the organizational laws concerning the requirements of the new constitution especially that the country is about to see elections that require the re-structuring of the state's entities by activating the decentralized regime that grants wide jurisdictions to the local democracy to run the people's affairs. Although these measures have a political, economic, and cultural importance since they will restore the consideration of the Amazigh language that is now the official language along with Arabic; activate the decentralized system; promote accountability; and attempt at establishing a fair representation of women in responsibility posts. However, the alarm bell sounded by Benkirane points to some weak spots that might lead to bankruptcy. Indeed, no matter how wise and sound the management is, the lack of financial and economic resources might cause the failure of some bets. Furthermore, implementing the requirements of the constitutional documents allows for practicing work based on power separation, peaceful power rotation, good governance, and the confrontation of the corruption that swept over Morocco. However, the government's work cannot create an encouraging atmosphere unless it deals with the major crises that are weighing the state down. Benkirane's honesty could be quite hurtful and frustrating. It could be due to the fact that his responsibilities turned out to be heavier than he ever imagined when his party was on the opposition side. However, the culture of honesty remains better than the politics of hiding the truth or masking it. The Late King Hassan II made a first when he said in the mid 1990s that the country is very close to a “cardiac arrest." In order for him to deliver his message – which would ultimately push the opposition factions to bear their responsibilities in the government – he used the reports of the World Bank on the situation of the education, management, and forecasts of the social discontent. However, these reports were pushed aside when the opposition took over the Moroccan cabinet for the first time ever. Back then, the political bets were above everything else. The margin of action allowed for using time to benefit the interesting political directions. Today, things seem different in light of the expending expectations. At the beginning of his experience as a prime minister, Benkirane liked to say that his country was about to fall into the labyrinth of the Arab Spring. He was making a political diagnosis for the social movement. Apparently, he replaced that with cautioning against what is to come in the event that people were to give up and abstain from solving the chronic problems. Will he be able to jeopardize his popularity and power even more, now that the elections are near? Or will he be proceeding with imposing stringent reforms just that are similar to surgeries?
