MSM President Joe Lesjongard, flanked by Minister Hurreram and MP Kavi Doolub, faced the press yesterday at Sun Trust. He dwelt a lot on the drug trade. According to him, it is not the MSM, but the Labor Party that has promoted drug trafficking,” said Joe Lesjongard, Minister of Energy and President of the MSM. He believes that the media should have supported the government instead.
“What is unfortunate is that some journalists are hijacking the battle that is being waged against these drug traffickers. The press must make the comparison. If a political party criticizes us on our fight against drug trafficking, it is our opponent, it is normal, but the press must make the comparison. Between 2005 and 2014, when the Labor Party was in power, what was the fight against drug trafficking? We asked for a commission of inquiry, but they refused. Drug dealers proliferated while the Labor Party was in power,” says Joe Lesjongard.
On drug trafficking, he observed that “our Prime Minister has shown his commitment to this fight at the risk of his life. Regarding the lease land offered by the government to the alleged Franklin network (convicted of drug trafficking in Reunion Island), Joe Lesjongard maintained that “the government acted” after learning that “improper activities were taking place there”.
Insisting that “living together” is paramount for his party, Minister Joe Lesjongard said “the social fabric is not weakened when the MSM is in power.
When asked about the conclusions of the V-Dem report on the erosion of democracy in Mauritius, Joe Lesjongard said he did not know on what basis the report was drawn up. He said he did not know on what basis the report was based. he noted “transparency” at the level of the state and the freedom to demonstrate. “It is when people (act) outside the legal framework that the authorities react.
For his part, MP Kavi Doolub welcomed the resumption of horse racing tomorrow as “a new beginning for the whole industry” through races organized by PTP.
Minister Bobby Hurreram criticized the PTr leader, recalling the “waste” of public funds during the red era. The minister cited a list of questionable PTr projects, including City Power, Airway Coffee, and the Red Earth/Verdun Road.
