Le Matinal

Blog: Salim Murthy should apologise to PM Navin Ramgoolam

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 19:57:00 +0400

Hon. PM Dr Navin Ramgoolam was invited at an Islamic function on 5th February 2012 at Aleemiah College Phoenix on the occasion of Yaum-un-Nabee, the anniversary of the birth of the Holy Prophet of Islam, Muhammad ibn Abdullah (saw), a religion which has existed for over 1400 years.

Blog: Unpatriotic Mentality

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 02:03:00 +0400

Part of the written media built up a huge publicity around the broadcasting of a feature on Mauritius by channel M6 that is broadcast by MC vision. Those behind that publicity relished with glee the fact that the feature would focus on the negative aspects of life in Mauritius.

Blog: Free Textbooks

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 02:19:00 +0400

Why shouldn't government decide to relieve parents of the heavy financial burden of spending thousands of rupees on textbooks which differ from school to school, and which give way to the production of poorly conceived books by Mauritian authors? Some of these authors hide behind American/British pennames in order to lure readers.

Blog: Strong Institutions needed

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 02:08:00 +0400

US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton said during a recent visit to Ivory Coast, that democracy does not mean only free and fair elections. Democracy also requires an independent judiciary, a free press and strong institutions.

Blog: The best Winning System

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 02:44:00 +0400

Talks are still going on the issue of electoral reforms. We have had the benefit of the Sachs report as amended by Mr. Ivan Collendavelloo and destroyed by the MSM when that party was in a coalition with the MMM. We have had the benefit of the Carcassonne report that has generated much controversy. The backbone of the reforms of Carcassonne is proportional representation. It is appropriate to go down memory lane here as Great Britain as the colonial power succumbed to the conservatives' point of view following the 1955 constitutional conference that took place in London from 12 to 20 July 1955.

Blog: Tough Year, tough Times

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 02:39:00 +0400

The right to be happy, the right to happiness and celebration has been fully exercised by all Mauritians during Christmas and New Year. I come from a culture which celebrates life and in which life includes death, from one's birth to one's demise. This is the ultimate truth. But in between we should not forgo our right to be happy and to celebrate.

Blog: Addendum necessary for the Reform Agenda

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 02:40:00 +0400

If the need to nurture an elite remains in the agenda of the Minister of Education, and if this elite tactically blends with the mass in a spirit of equal opportunities and within the framework of democracy, the admission of students of CPE or its variant will only help to divide our State Secondary Schools into three main categories - the star schools, the less popular and yet well performing schools like the France Boyer de la Giroday SSS or Sodnac SSS, and the least popular schools that are associated with rowdy youth, demotivated teachers, poor school leadership and therefore poor academic performance.

Blog: Lettre ouverte à Soodarsun Jugessur

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 17:05:00 +0400

Cher Monsieur Jugessur

Vous avez donné des entrevues à droite et à gauche pour essayer de justifier votre injustifiable comportement. Le public a droit à la vérité et pour lui rendre la tâche facile nous vous posons ces quelques questions. De grâce, répondez par des simple OUI ou NON et n’essayez surtout pas de noyer le poisson dans des marécages de confidentialité, ‘gagging order’ ou secrets imaginaire.

Blog: The ‘indignés’ and the Ambitious

Sat, 14 Jan 2012 03:12:00 +0400

The MMM professes to be a party with original ideas that will save Mauritius from all evils real or imaginary. It also claims to hold the monopoly of good governance and solutions in Mauritius. The MMM has been in government in 1982 for ten months; in 1991 for two years; in 1995 for two years and in 2000 for five years. In what way has it changed the evils that it says are besetting Mauritius?

Blog: Our Ambition at Dawn 2012

Fri, 06 Jan 2012 02:42:00 +0400

A small step is being taken at dawn 2012 to set us on the path of realizing our dream of becoming a developed country, a high income country. Our civil service and para statal bodies will remain open on Saturdays.

Blog: What has changed?

Fri, 06 Jan 2012 02:57:00 +0400

Nothing has changed in the approach and thinking of the MMM. If we go back to the press of the seventies when the MMM were not represented in Parliament and even after the 1976 general elections, the clarion call of that party has been general elections. If it depended on the MMM they would hold general elections every six months.

Blog: Final Resolutions

Fri, 06 Jan 2012 02:44:00 +0400

It would have been strange if we had lived a specially cosy 2011 in the midst of floundering European and American economies, in the offing of the Arab uprising which saw the death, expulsion and murder of tyrants, dictators and political psychopaths like Bin Laden.

Blog: Mauritians become like Jamaicans as they lose their Identities

Sat, 31 Dec 2011 16:45:00 +0400

The Bible is, for the first time, being translated into Jamaican patois, which is a Creole language. But many Jamaican Christians say Creole "dilutes the word of God" and "patois words that we would want to use to fully explain what was in the original (Bible), are words that are vulgar".

Blog: To Hell with Remake

Fri, 30 Dec 2011 11:56:00 +0400

Day in and day out, week after week Paul Berenger the leader of the opposition states that there will be no Labour/MMM alliance and that the MMM option is a remake of the 2000 MMM/MSM alliance with Sir Anerood Jugnauth as the leader of that alliance.

Blog: Ministry of Education’s Epiphany

Fri, 30 Dec 2011 12:00:00 +0400

Reports say the Ministry of Education is unhappy with CPE results of 2011. Let it be understood why CPE cannot grow out of the mire and miasma in which our system is locked.

Blog: Carcassonne Report on New Year Menu?

Fri, 30 Dec 2011 12:02:00 +0400

I believe the Carcassonne Report on electoral reforms will definitely be a part of discussions during New Year celebrations among family and friends. It is healthy for every citizen to exercise his basic right to express himself freely on all matters of public interests - in fact on all matters in a democracy.

Blog: Remake 2000 - What a Pity!

Mon, 26 Dec 2011 10:55:00 +0400

MMM today is reduced to seeking a remake of 2000 alliance to come back to power. The condition is that Sir Anerood Jugnauth, President of the Republic, resigns and leads the alliance. This condition means that the present MSM led by Pravind Jugnauth is worthless. But who remembers and cares for the remake of 2000 alliance?

Blog: Reforms in the Senior Scholarship System

Mon, 26 Dec 2011 10:59:00 +0400

Mauritius is a brilliant example of a democracy solicitous of providing equal opportunities to all,using the tools of positive discrimination to bring further equality where nature and accident have created disparities.

Blog: Are We ready for Proportional Representation?

Mon, 26 Dec 2011 11:02:00 +0400

The topic of electoral reform has been in the air for ages now. A weighted majority is required to bring in any changes to the Constitution to implement any electoral reform whatever form it takes. We nearly headed towards an electoral reform under the MMM/MSM regime that swept to power in 2000. Though that coalition had more than the required weighted majority it beat about the bush as the two partners did not see eye to eye on the proposed changes.

Blog: Is forgiveness realistic?

Fri, 16 Dec 2011 01:21:00 +0400

The Truth and Justice Commission has recommended ‘reparations’ instead of compensation for the harm done to slaves. Here again it is interpretation that saves the foundational authors of the report. Apart from the rapacious occupation, seizure, prescription or robbery of land belonging to the poor and weak, the damage has been psychological, economic and spiritual.