Madar (Rabat) - Moroccan Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi pledged on Monday, November 2, 2026, to present a law on illicit enrichment, a law on conflict of interest and a law on money laundering, on condition that the texts carry full fair-trial guarantees, during an oral-questions session in the House of Representatives dominated by the fight against corruption, news site Hespress reported.
According to the same source, several MPs called for the long-awaited laws to be tabled, for a review of the asset-declaration system, better protection for whistleblowers and a firmer link between responsibility and accountability. Some urged applying the "where did you get this from" principle and a conflict-of-interest law in line with Article 36 of the Constitution, arguing that punishment alone is not enough without prevention, transparency and political will.
In his first reply, the minister said the government's approach rests on applying the law, respecting the presumption of innocence and safeguarding rights and freedoms. The fight against corruption must not become a pretext to drop legal guarantees, he said, rejecting what he called populist practices that would lead to people being jailed without respect for the rules of law.
The session grew tense when Justice and Development Party (PJD) MP Abdessamad Haiker called the answer "pitiful" and said the withdrawal of the illicit enrichment bill would keep haunting the minister. Ouahbi retorted by asking whether describing a minister's words that way was not also a form of corruption, before PJD group leader Abdellah Bouanou asked for the word to be struck from the record.
The minister warned against the "social condemnation" that comes before any court ruling, saying that a mere police summons or the circulation of photos of suspects at their arrest can harm their reputation even after an acquittal, and that some citizens spend five or ten years in court before being cleared. He added that the right to remain silent cannot be treated as a confession or proof of guilt.
Ouahbi said one option under study is a stand-alone anti-corruption code that would take these offences out of the general Penal Code and group illicit enrichment, conflict of interest, money laundering and related crimes under a dedicated procedure. He said he had gathered proposals from two parliamentary groups, was ready to add the PJD's, and would submit a report to the relevant committee. No timetable was announced for the texts.
