Our politicians can no longer feel the pulse of the masses across the country.They are failing to transmit one fundamental message to voters: government is working for you, not for elites of some kind or for friends and relatives in the party establishment. They are unable to present voters with a palatable alternative because they have lost the right to adopt a holier-than-thou attitude !
Why ?
Take the case of the proposed IBL project in Agalega approved by the MMM-MSM govt but criticised and rejected by the Ramgoolam govt. How did the opposition react when the present regime mentioned this doubtful project ? In their press conference they alerted us ,not on the project (the conditions of the lease, the exclusive status , its viability, any EIA carried out, etc) but to the fact that Joe Lesjongard was then Minister of Housing and Lands, Pravind Jugnauth the Deputy Prime Minister while Steven Obeegadoo and Alan Ganoo were also members of the cabinet when this project was discussed. In other words, “Bonnet Blanc et Blanc Bonnet !”
We also have the case of Neotown project from the Mumbai group "Patel Engineering" where we had to pay more than US$40 million in the investment treaty claim over the terminated real estate lease. That project was branded by P. Berenger as a “Mega Scandal”. Another lousy project that has benefited undue favours from the Ramgoolam government. What was wrong with this project ? We, as taxpayers, need to know ! Why do our politicians, especially the opposition, so mum about it ? What about the Betamax project, another mega-scandal ? “Bonnet Blanc et Blanc Bonnet !”
Take the case of a former minister who has served as a minister under Navin Ramgoolam, Sir Anerood and Pravind Jugnauth; he has rented a house in Vacoas, and is using the premises to keep his archives. He is refusing to leave, while the owners do not have access to their own home and are forced to live with in-laws. At least you would have expected some reactions from some politicians …Nothing ! Who cares ! “Bonnet Blanc et Blanc Bonnet!”
One by one our institutions - the Police, the Judiciary , MBC, Air Mts, BoM, SM…..are being hollowed out by graft, cronyism and mismanagement, they have appointed crooks and liars to senior jobs and ensured that the watchdogs who are supposed to stop abuse and corruption are muzzled.
But to lesser extent, have we not been witnessing more of the same in the past- the cronyism at MT, at Air Mts , at STC, at the MBC…, the encroachment on our democracy, on the effectiveness and transparency of our institutions , on our governance, on accountability , on management of the economy….; one regime after the other, they handed over the levers of power to the traditional propertied oligarchy. If we are in such a mess today, these politicians cannot escape their responsibility ! “Bonnet Blanc et Blanc Bonnet!”
They have all flouted the principles of sound public finances.They are following the same populist policies, ( now the 20 measures and perhaps a 14th month bonus ) turning our elections into auctions where they compete to be more generous than others to voters on pensions and other bread and butter issues.
Now that they are selling off the country's land to foreigners , is it that different from previous policies on the Silver Economy , on residence permits , on luxurious villas, IRS, Smart Cities, …? Have they committed themselves to a limit on the construction of hotels in coastal regions or a review of the real estate schemes and the ongoing bétonage of the country ? “Bonnet Blanc et Blanc Bonnet! ”
Does the new Alliance (PTR-MMM-ND and…. ) or the New Alternative(NA) has the guts to carry out the sector reforms to generate and enhance productivity improvements and sustainable growth ? How many of these old guards will have it written in black and white in their political manifestos that“ restoring economic balance rests on tough fiscal and monetary measures, and that we’ll have to change course on populist policies and ensure that the country lives within its means "?
Hammering out a common minimum programme that presents a viable alternative is essential. But our NA is more bothered about selecting their candidates on the basis of their traditional communal/caste-support bases than winning over their electorates on governance/policy issues and on their call for a national renewal .
How can we trust this Alliance-the NA- still trapped within the box of the old policies and the old ways of thinking !!! There are alternatives to our present political and economic model of development which are both desirable and workable. But it will not be coming from them ! “Bonnet Blanc et Blanc Bonnet!”
Le constat : We must not give the upper hand to PTR and MMM ; other opposition parties, especially the ReA and other ecologist groups, should join in ; that should be our demand ; It is not necessarily a bad thing if others also join in -A united front à la Nouveau Front populaire(au premier tour) in France. They will break the monopoly of PTR and MMM and give the new alternative a new direction and “a sort of equilibrium and a counterforce to the diktat of the two main parties “( Please read ÉDITO of 5plus -"ReA: une bouffée d'air frais pour l'opposition?")
