[Blog] H.E. President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim is apolitical and should resist all political pressure to resign

There is no case against the President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim for her use, as an unremunerated Director of the PLANET EARTH INSTITUTO charity, of their credit card issued to her, even to justify the setting up of a tribunal as required under the Constitution as there was no wrongdoing on her part. The President is apolitical and she should resist all political pressure. Justice must follow the legal path and not the path of political pressure and lynching. However, there is a case for Police to investigate the leak to the press of the President’s personal bank documents, which is not only affecting our financial institutions but also causing immeasurable damage to the standing of Mauritius internationally.

Distinction between a Company Director and the Director of a Charity

A limited company has issued share capital and shareholders and governed by the Companies Act. PLANET EARTH INSTITUTO LTD (PEI), with Dr Álvaro Sobrinho as Chariman, is a private company limited by guarantee (LBG) without share capital and registered as a Charity and governed by the Charities Act. The appointed Director of such charity is not the same as a Company Director.

First of all, President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim was not an employee of PEI. She was an unremunerated Director (as a Scientist) to help promote the scientific independence of Africa. PEI gave her a Barclays credit card to use for that purpose. Given that this does not involve taxpayers’ money, the President did use the Barclay Card, issued in her name only, to make certain 'personal' purchases abroad, expenses which she said she paid back. And, what were those personal items? A dress, some jewels and a pair of shoes. Well, if the President has to promote a charity and attend high profile functions attended by the likes of Bill Gates, Prince Charles, H.E. Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Chairperson of the African Union, Right Hon Lord Boateng etc, she has to be well dressed. Many such Directors hire such items paid for by the charity. So, PEI should really cover her attire expenditure. But the President chose to pay them back. This is a matter entirely between her and the charity and certainly not a matter of the state. But this is not preventing opposition politicians from screaming for her resignation.

Opposition politicians are still demanding that Pravind Jugnauth resigns as PM until the Privy Council renders judgment in the MedPoint case in which he reallocated Rs144m of public funds when he was Finance Minister for the government purchase of MedPoint. Opposition politicians are still calling for the resignation of Pravind Jugnauth as PM because he replaced his Father Sir Anerood Jugnauth who resigned without calling general elections, replacement which they allege was allegedly a « passation de pouvoir » (« transfer of power »). Why should the President resign to please the opposition simply because she used a Barclays credit card issued in her name on the instructions of PEI (a private charity) which involved no public funds?

Did Pravind Jugnauth not say that when he reallocated Rs144m of public funds to purchase MedPoint, he was merely fulfilling an administrative function in good faith? What makes anyone think that the President did not use the credit card issued in her name in good faith, money which did not come out of public funds and which was paid back even though she did not have to?

Leak of President’s bank documents

Coming from a very modest background, H.E. President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim is a Scientist and academician by profession. She was selected as President in 2015 by the present government after it was elected in December 2014. She was much loved and hailed as the first woman president in the Indian Ocean.

The controversy surrounding the President AGF came about when certain confidential documents, including bank statements sent to her as Mrs Ameenah Gurib-Fakim at what seems to be her home address, relating to the issuing of the credit card by Barclays Bank and her bank statements, were leaked to the press. Those documents were published on 28 February 2018 to inform the public. The bank statements showed details of those personal transactions. If the President has the consent of PEI, in what way is it a state matter since the President did no wrong, especially that taxpayers’ money is not involved? PEI never complained.

Coup for the Opposition

Obviously, the publication of those confidential documents came as a coup for the political opposition which is always asking government politicians and appointees to resign, even to the extent of calling general elections at every opportunity when elections are not due until 2020. But, effectively no one and no authority is asking whether those confidential documents were lawfully obtained. The focus is almost exclusively on putting pressure on the President to resign. This pressure really started as soon as the name of Scientist Ameenah Gurib-Fakim was put forward for President. Her connection with PEI in 2016 was even decried because one of the Directors, also Chairman, in the name of Álvaro Sobrinho, an Angolan businessman and philanthropist, was allegedly being prosecuted in Portugal, which turned out to be fake news. (ref. Portugal Resident 16 March 2017).

The PMO is reported to have succumbed to opposition pressure and requested the President to resign without the matter being investigated by a tribunal as required under the constitution. (Défi 6 March 2018). This is totally wrong. The government should not put political pressure on the President to resign. It must follow the procedure as set out under the constitution. Moreover, the government cannot rely on documents which may have been illegally obtained. The Police must first investigate whether or not the personal bank documents published in the press were legally obtained before the PM can put the matter to Parliament to decide whether or not to refer the matter to a tribunal which will decide, in turn, whether the use of the Barclaycard issued in the sole name of Mrs Ameenah Gurib-Fakim upon the instructions of PEI amounted to a wrongdoing. It is not advisable for the President to resign merely under political pressure. In fact, the President is apolitical and should resist all political pressure to evince her.

Conclusion

Opposition politicians are still demanding that Pravind Jugnauth resigns until the Privy Council renders judgment in the MedPoint case. Opposition politicians are still calling for the resignation of Pravind Jugnauth as PM because he replaced his Father Sir Anerood Jugnauth who resigned without calling general elections. In truth, there was never any « transfer of power » from father to son in the same way that there was never any wrongdoing on the part of the President when she used the credit card issued in her name upon the instructions of Charity PEI. Why should the PM or President resign to please the opposition?

PM Pravind Jugnauth has been accused by Lindsay Rivière, former president of the Media Trust, of « cowardice » for not fielding a candidate at the No.18 by-election, of lacking « charisma », of not being a « strong leader » like SSR, Navin Ramgoolam, etc, of lacking « vision » (ref. l'Express Weekly 2 Feb 18), perhaps because Pravind Jugnauth keeps giving in to opposition political pressure too easily, such as in the case of former Minister for Housing and Lands Showkutally Soodhun who was talking in the privacy of his office to please his bias and prejudiced audience and was secretly recorded, and in the case of former Attorney General Ravi Yerrigadoo based on allegations made to the press by a self-confessed criminal, Husein Abdool Rahim, who later retracted the allegations.

It is the duty of government to remain strong and protect Ministers as well as the President from such attacks. There is no case against President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim and no justification for the setting up of a tribunal as there was no wrongdoing on her part. She was never paid by Charity PEI. She never touched taxpayers’ money. However, there is a case for Police to investigate the leak of the President’s personal bank documents. Barclays Bank Mauritius Ltd has a lot to answer for. Government MPs should not give in to the lynching of the President by Opposition politicians and to trial by the press. It would be wrong for government to use political pressure to force the President to resign. The President is apolitical and should stay put. Justice must follow the legal path and not the path of political pressure and lynching.

M Rafic Soormally

London

06 March 2018