After weeks of discord with the government concerning the interpretation of the article 5 in the parties' law, the Party of Modernity and Authenticity (PAM), one of the most powerful and influential parties, albeit newly born, has decided to pull its support from the government.

The article 5 prevents representatives who change their party affiliation during their term in the parliament from presenting their candidature to the local elections, due on June 12.

PAM, which has been only recently created by a former high-ranking official in the ministry of interior, accused the government of deliberately targeting its candidates.

In this issue, "it is evident that the PAM is the only target of the parties forming the government," said late last week the party's secretary-general, Mohamed Cheikh Biadillah, during a press conference.

PAM's move would weaken the cabinet, which obliges the prime minister to secure new alliances in order to consolidate his governing coalition and remain in power, analysts have said.

However, this support came not from a political party, but from the king himself, who voiced, from his residence in Paris, his support to Prime Minister Abbas El Fassi and his government.

The monarch thus gave his instructions to the executive to hold the upcoming local elections in total transparency and respect of the Law.

Expressing his pride over the king's trust, El Fassi said that this confidence “is a message to the prime minster, the government, the political arena and indirectly to the entire Moroccan people.”

For his part, the Minister of Communication and Government Spokesperson, Khalid Naciri, said that this renewed trust would breathe a new life in the government's mission.

“The king's renewed trust will allow the government to work in good conditions during the election period and to pursue the large-scale projects launched in recent years,” he told the second national channel ‘2M', in a joint declaration with the speaker of the House of Representatives, Mustapha Mansouri.