Xavier-Luc Duval, Paul Bérenger and Nando Bodha faced the press this morning. The three leaders of the L’Espoir agreement spoke about the importance of the police as an institution
Xavier-Luc Duval spoke about the economic situation, wage compensation and fuel prices. He said that we must already understand why inflation is 10.9% in Mauritius while it is three times lower in the Maldives and Seychelles. “Our inflation rate should have been much lower,” he said. He added that government must accept that its poor economic management is responsible for the current situation. “It takes good management for Mauritians to live well. The basis of the problem is not the wage compensation but the way the economy is run,” he said.
For Xavier-Luc Duval, very few people will feel that their loss of purchasing power have been compensated by the Rs 1,000 offered. Hence, the fact, according to him, that the Mauritian will be even poorer next year. He said that the current economic situation means that a person, who has a loan of Rs 1 million, will pay Rs 2,000 more in interests alone. For him, the current economic situation means that the expenses of Mauritians will far exceed the amount of Rs 1,000 in salary compensation. He also recalled that the CSG Allowance of Rs 1,000, introduced in June 2022, was supposed to last for only one year. “It is supposed to be abolished in June 2023. We are saying that this allowance should be maintained. Otherwise, it will have disastrous effects on all Mauritians,” he said.
Water crisis in Rodrigues: Duval asks for a special effort from GM
Xavier-Luc Duval mentioned the problem of water shortage in Rodrigues. It is inconceivable, he said, that Minister Sudheer Maudhoo was not aware that there was a shortage in Rodrigues. Currently, the problem extends to drinking water. “The situation is such that the regional government has decided to import water bottles for the population. It is serious! We ask the Mauritian government to grant urgent and special assistance to Rodrigues,” he said. For him, special funds are needed.
Paul Bérenger was the most vocal about the police. MMM leader Paul Bérenger commented on the case of activist Bruneau Laurette, saying that the latter deserves fair treatment: “We ask the Commissioner of Police to act as soon as possible, to put order in this mess that is the police force” said Paul Bérenger. The MMM leader believes that the Commissioner of Police must regain control of the situation, taking appropriate decisions to restore the police force to its former glory. He indicates that the malfunctioning within the police force has caused a loss of confidence of the population.
For Nando Bodha, it was already unthinkable that the Police Commissioner had been acting on an interim basis all this time. For the leader of the Rassemblement Mauricien, it is important to come with a Constitution Appointments’ Committee to have a respected person at the head of the Police. Xavier-Luc Duval drew a parallel with Germany. “There, a police officer is trained for 3 years before being put on the field. Here, it’s 6 months. In Germany, the policeman is equipped. In his car, he has what he needs to take a DNA sample. We have to understand why the training takes 3 years. This is the reason why the German policeman does the work of 10 Mauritian policemen“, he said.
Parliament: “The Prime Minister has answered only three questions in 7 sessions“, deplores Bodha
Nando Bodha focused his intervention on Parliament. The institution, he said, has lost all its prestige as a temple of democracy. He recalled that the Speaker referred to the 1996 amendment to allow a non-elected person to become Speaker of the National Assembly. “He wanted to justify his appointment. But this is ridiculous. It was a good amendment. But it needed the right person because it is well known that Pravind Jugnauth has used and abused this clause to control Parliament because the Speaker cannot do anything without the approval of the Leader of the House,” he said.
And Nando Bodha recalled that since the resumption of Parliament, there have been only 7 sittings, three on Tuesday, three on Thursday and one on Friday. “Surprisingly, the Prime Minister only answered three questions in three PMQT sessions. Each time, he took 30 minutes to answer only one question. This is a travesty. This is unacceptable,” he said. He added that only 60 interpellations have been answered out of 180 since the resumption of parliamentary work. For him, the Parliament cannot continue to operate in this way.
