He had been preparing for a single issue, namely the proposals to be submitted to the Electoral Commissioner on the sidelines of the upcoming legislative elections. But in the light of current events, the prediction of a further increase before the Budget, the current rise in fuel prices and the reasons behind this high rate were the main points addressed by the Leader of the Reds. His criticism of the government was strong, and his explanations were precise!
Revenge on the 10% mark up
4 increases in 5 months! Dr. Ramgoolam’s point of attack was that “the increase in fuel prices is a provocation to the population… when the PTr was in power, petrol never reached such a price“. He recalled that if the current government does not manage to increase the price of fuel to its maximum, it is thanks to the PTr government “My government had put a scale to prevent the government from increasing the gasoline of more than 10% at once so that the people do not feel too much of this possible increase”, that is referring to the imposition of Regulation 8 of the Consumer Protection (Control of Price of Petroleum Products) Regulations 2011. The PTr leader wants taxes to be removed to relieve the population. The former Prime Minister described the decision to increase the price of petrol and diesel so much as a revenge, saying that it was precisely because of this imposition by his government at the time. “According to my information, they will increase petrol again before the Budget,” he warned.
Rs 34.68 in taxes on a litre of petrol!
According to his calculations, the government is taking “exactly Rs 34.68 on a litre of petrol“. He gave details of the various taxes on a litre of petrol: “There is a tax of 65 cents on a litre for constructions in the Red Sea, that makes a total of Rs 175 million. Then, there is the Covid Tax at Rs 2, which brings in Rs 500 million to the government while the Covid 19 is going down and we get free vaccines. There is the Covid Solidarity Fund, which is accounted for at about Rs 250 million. Rs 3 goes into the Built Mauritius Fund, which finances these white elephant projects. Rs 1.85 goes to the RDA. There is an Excise Duty of Rs 12 on 1 litre. This Excise Duty added to the VAT raises Rs 890 million. The cost, insurance and freight (CIF) price per litre is Rs 39.42 but is sold at 74.10. After deducting the profit of the petrol stations, we calculate that the present government takes Rs 34.68 on a litre of petrol.”
Improvements in the electoral system
On the subject of the upcoming elections, the PTr leader was not less critical. He directly announced his “diplomatic” action to formulate “improvements” in the electoral system to the Electoral Commissioner, Irfan Rahman. “The PTr will submit a series of proposals to the Electoral Commissioner in the context of the electoral registration exercise. This exercise is very important for our democracy. In the last election, there were never so many people who were not on the electoral register. This must not happen in the next elections. The PTr has a duty to guide the population to register. It is crucial for the country,” said Dr Ramgoolam. Among his suggestions, the counting of votes on the same day of the elections, making voting compulsory, a firm ban on the right to vote for foreigners but also Mauritians abroad, the publication of a Recapitulation Sheet of the 20 constituencies following the incidents that occurred in the last elections, the online registration of voters but the formal ban on the right to vote by electronic means for fear of rigging, a point on which Dr. Ramgoolam did not wish to comment further for fear of an ongoing case. He also intends to propose procedures for notifying a person of the reasons why he or she is removed from the electoral register or why he or she is not on it, as well as provisions to prevent fraudulent votes of various kinds. Navin Ramgoolam announced the beginning of an awareness campaign for the registration of citizens, “Our weapon within the PTr is the right to vote“, he concluded on this subject.
Dubai: Dr Ramgoolam’s sarcastic interrogations
During this press briefing, the former head of government took the opportunity to comment on a justification by the Minister of Technology, Deepak Balgobin, who said that the government delegation had not gone to Dubai to waste time or to go for a walk. Dr Ramgoolam publicly questioned the presence of a 13-members delegation in Dubai and the need for the Finance Minister to go twice for the same event! “The opening and closing?” he insinuated in a sarcastic tone.
On the issue of Fuel Strike put forward by Bruneau Laurette, Dr Navin Ramgoolam wishes to study the intentions, the whys and the wherefores before committing to it!
