Strange decisions and strangers

So, Mr. Joe Lesjongard has decided to step down as secretary general of the Mouvement Patriotique (MP), an off-shoot of the Mouvement Militant Mauricien (MMM). However, he is not quitting the party. Probably, this is one of the strangest resignations from a political party. Mr. Lesjongard is not only staying as member of the national office ( actually, the politburo) of the ML but he is also presiding over the organizing committee set up in view of celebrations to be held to mark the first anniversary of the party. The reasons for this outlandish resignation spelled out in the media are as follows: that there exist profound divergence between the president of the MP, Mr. Alan Ganoo and Mr. Lesjongard; that the former secretary-general of the ML is more and more frustrated with regards to the functioning of the party and that a lack of dynamism has been noted.

MORE AGGRESSIVE STRATEGY REQUIRED

A member of the ML, speaking on conditions of anonymity told Le Defi Quotidien (issue of Thursday 16 June, 2016) that “He (Mr. Lesjongard) has regularly insisted that the MP should adopt a more aggressive strategy both at the level of the National Assembly and when addressing the media but it seems that he is losing patience”. According to the same article, penned by our colleague Thierry Laurent, the latest statements by another ML member Mr. Jean-Claude Barbier to the press has intensified the unease within the party. Mr. Barbier had revealed that he was keeping all options open, including that of joining the Mouvement Socialiste Militant (MSM). An article published in L’Express on Thursday 16June, 2016, sums up the reasons for the resignation as follows: “At the level of the supreme instance of the party there is a lack of cohesion, strictness and vision”. The author of the same article published in l’Express, underlines that yet another member of the ML, Mr. Dev Ramnah is also distancing himself from the party. Mr. Ramnah, a former Speaker at the National Assembly stated in no uncertain terms that he is not considering joining another party and that it is most likely that he is quitting politics. For some, what is happening within the ML should not be given much prominence for the simple reason that the ML is a mere spin-off of the MMM with no specific objective and ambition. Its founding was due to serious disagreements between its current president, Mr. Alan Ganoo and the leader of the MMM, Mr. Paul Bérenger. We tend to believe that such is not the case. However small the ML might be, the party could change the factors both at the level of the Opposition and the Government. In a hypothetical situation where it joins hands with the Labour Party at the National Assembly, the MMM would be outnumbered and Mr. Bérenger could lose his post as Leader of the Opposition. On the other hand, the MSM seems to have kept the ML as some sort of an affiliated player, should the PMSD become too greedy.

“ For some, what is happening within the ML should not be given much prominence for the simple reason that the ML is a mere spin-off of the MMM with no specific objective and ambition. Its founding was due to serious disagreements between its current president, Mr. Alan Ganoo and the leader of the MMM, Mr. Paul Bérenger. "

Realignment in our local politics has been a common practice ever since the country became independent in 1968. You would recall how the then Leader of the PMSD the late Sir Gaëtan Duval publicly brushed aside the possibility of a coalition with the Mauritius Labour Party. A few days later, the PMSD joined the Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam-led government. The rest is history.

TRADITIONS WITHIN THE MSM

Perhaps only prior to the 1967 general elections, the PMSD has never before been so popular and strong. That could explain why the MSM is trying to recruit people having a specific profile, let us say it bluntly, from within the creoles. Mr. Jean-François Chaumière, a former president of the Mauritius Labour Party has been nominated as Senior Adviser at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). He was most probably rewarded for his contribution to the electoral campaign of the Lepep Alliance in 2014. In the event that Mr. Jean-Claude Barbier, and perhaps later, Mr. Joe Lesjongard, join in the MSM, the party will be in a better position to seek the support of the Creole voters. In any case, Mr. Joe Lesjongard has served as president of the MSM in the past. Having a Creole as its president had become almost a tradition for the MSM. It all started with Mr Sylvio Michel and continued with Mr. Karl Offmann but this practice was discontinued when Mr. Lesjongard left the MSM, to later join the MMM. It was much later that Mr. Showkutally Soodhun was appointed as president of the MSM. At one point of time, rumours were rife that Mr.Etienne Sinatambou, incidentally another former president of the Mauritius Labour Party, was ogling the post of president of the MSM.

PRAVIND TAKING MORE MEASURED LOOK?

Speaking of the MSM, have you noticed that its leader Mr. Pravind Jugnauth is taking a more measured look at events? He was quite sharp when he replied to questions from Mr. Axel Chenney from l’Express on the problem of connectivity between Rotterdam and Port Louis that prevented two Dutch witnesses from testifying in the Boskalis case. “Do you think I am stupid?”, he bluntly replied to Mr. Chenney, adding that what the journalist was saying was a mere allegation. Mr. Pravind Jugnauth even grabbed the opportunity to make cutting remarks at the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Paul Bérenger. When Mr. Chenney questioned him on what the Leader of the Opposition had said earlier (that what happened in the Boskalis case was the cover up of this century and that Attorney General Mr. Ravi Yerrigadoo should reveal his correspondences with the lawyer of R. Prakash Maunthrooa, Senior Adviser at the PMO), Mr. Jugnauth replied that if Mr. Bérenger was serious enough, he should have focused his Private Notice Question (PNQ) on the Boskalis case instead of the aftermath of a hypothetical BREXITt. But we believe that Mr. Bérenger was well inspired to question the Prime Minister Sir Anerood Jugnauth on the consequences of an eventual Brexit. Although the Prime Minister said that he is confident that “our relations with the UK will stand the test of time beyond any eventual BREXIT”, we feel that things will not be that easy. In listening to the reply of the Prime Minister, we cannot help pondering how demagogical our politicians can be. In reply to another PNQ from Mr. Bérenger on 17 May ,2016, the Prime Minister had stated that Mauritius would resort to British bashing should the British government fail to hold talks with the Mauritius government in the return of the Chagos Archipelago. On Tuesday, Sir Anerood Jugnauth recalled “the long standing and friendly relations that bind Mauritius to the UK. “We have, since the time of our independence, had strong diplomatic and trade relations with the UK, even prior to the UK acceding to the European Community. Our exports to the UK stood at MUR 11 billion and imports at MUR 4 billion in 2015. Our total sugar exports to the UK for the 2015 crop amounted to 52,000 tons. Textile and clothing exports stood at MRU 6 billion, while processed tuna exports amounted to MRU 2.8 billion. Some 130,000 tourists visited Mauritius last year from the UK and the UK stands third in term of tourist arrivals”. As an end note, it is hoped that working relations between the National Assembly and the media be improved. Members of the Press, whether we are considered as strangers or not, accomplish a very complicated task in reporting on the work of the National Assembly. We deserve some respect and consideration. Hope we are not blurred by illusion.