The Ministry of Interior tracks down violations of urban planning
The Ministry of Interior wants to take action concerning urban planning violations. At least two initiatives confirm this. First, there is the letter sent to everyone’s surprise by Mohamed Yaacoubi, wali (head governor) of the region of Rabat-Salé-Kenitra directly to the Minister of Urban Planning and Housing instead of going through the hierarchy. In his letter, the wali said that the local commission in charge of monitoring projects has visited 91 real estate projects in the region having obtained the certificate of compliance for the year 2021. It turns out that 70% of these projects have received the certificate of completion signed by architects, attesting to their compliance with the authorized documents, including construction plans, while the situation is quite different. The letter also states that the increasing number of certificates of compliance issued by architects for projects in an irregular situation with respect to the authorized plans endangers the safety of citizens and affects the urban aesthetics. The regional chapter of the Architects’ Association has been asked by the wali to take administrative action on these violations of the law. Legal proceedings may also be considered against the architects concerned.
On another level, the wali announced that the issuance of occupancy permits will now be conditioned by the compliance of real estate projects. This is considered by some architects as a step backwards from the provisions of Law 66-12 which places architects at the heart of the procedure for the occupancy permit. The document is delivered on the basis of the certificate of compliance signed by the architect who seems to have been left out of the new scheme. This pilot experiment is conducted in several cities, including Rabat.
As a reminder, the failure to obtain an occupancy permit prevents the splitting of the land title and the registration of the property at the Land Registry. This has the consequence of prohibiting any transaction.
The approach of the wali of Rabat does not seem to be isolated. Indeed, his colleague in the region of Tangiers-Tetouan-Al Hoceima has sent a similar letter to the president of the regional council of the Architects’ Association. A letter that says a lot about the nature of irregularities in 26 projects under construction in the region. The wali has also accompanied his letter by a table summarizing the nature of violations, with the address of the buildings concerned, the number and date of the building permit, and the name of the architect responsible. Among the irregularities reported were the construction of one or two additional floors without authorization, the transformation of a mezzanine floor into a full floor, the construction of a recessed floor, the increased height of the building, and other irregularities.
The initiatives of the walis of Rabat and Tangiers are considered by a professional as an «open war» between the Ministry of Interior and the Department of Urban Planning and Housing.
Hassan EL ARIF
