Noureddine Bensouda (Arabic: نور الدين بنسودة; born 1963–Rabat, Morocco) is a senior Moroccan civil servant who was the Director of the Direction Générale des Impôts between 1999 and 2010 (Direction Générale des Impôts).[1] He since became Director of the Trésorerie Générale du Royaume.[1][2][3] Like other influential figures in the Moroccan state, Bensouda was a classmate of Mohammed VI at the Collège Royal in Rabat.
Controversy
In July 2012 Bensouda was involved in a scandal related to wage bonuses along with Salaheddine Mezouar, then minister of Finance.[4] Leaked documents, revealed that Bensouda and Mezouar issued orders to reward themselves with substantial monthly and quarterly bonuses.[4] The bonuses totaled roughly MAD97,772/month (US$12,000).[5] Mezouar declared that the bonuses were legal basing the decision on a 1941 decree by the French colonial-head which is still enforced. The French decree allowed such bonuses to be issued for high-ranking employees of the colonial administration.
The two employees who revealed this information, Abdelmajid Louiz and Mohammed Reda, were prosecuted and tried for leaking confidential documents.[4] On 21 March 2013, Alouiz was sentenced to two-months suspended prison and a MAD2,000 fine, while Reda was acquitted.[6] However both employees were excluded from their jobs.
