«Ban ki pe declar zot locomotive pou elections 2019, ene sel ku pou vin wagon kan elections pou koste,» just wait and see! Today with their congress and meeting where they had been able to lure a few thousands of people with transport facilities coupled with «manze/bwar», they think that their party has become stronger, «s’est refait une virginité,» and consequently they can face the electorate in solo. They forget that a few thousands of supporters do not make the elections. Elections are not made by «bater bis» but by the silent masses who build their logic «sur le bilan d’un government sortant― its performance, achievement and seriousness in handling the affairs of the country. They make the difference between demagogy and the government’s track record and weigh up those who have really at heart the interest of the country and reject those, as the one because he had not obtained the Finance Portfolio «li lev pake, li ale» which is synonymous with personal interest.
The three leaders― Blue, Purple and Red who think that their party is solid enough to face the next elections without an alliance are simply dreaming on. It is unimaginable to imagine the PMSD at the head of the country with Xavier Duval as Prime minister. He is dreaming! To start with his party does not command any stronghold in the rural areas which usually make the polls. Since its creation the PMSD has never been a driving force. It is simply a political wagon, a minority party which has always looked for a locomotive to hook up its wagon. It will always be so if we take into account the ethnicity of the party. Today if the PMSD is in Parliament, it is thanks to its adherence to «Lalians Lepep» for the December, 2014 election. Alone the party would have bitten the dust. A Blue PM! «To pe fer rye!» Anyhow, let Xavier dream, «après tout c’est son droit! Tout le monde rêve.»
The other dreamer, the leader of the ‘Purple’ who after the May Day meeting where his party had gathered a good crowd is already picturing himself in the seat of the Prime minister. The few thousands his party had collected at Rose-Hill make him think that his party has regained « ces forces d’antan comme Samson» «Le MMM ira seul aux elections. » Overnight the wagon party has become the locomotive. Since the elections of 1983 where the MMM stood alone and was beaten, the party has always hooked up its wagon to a driving force. Bérenger is fully alive to the fact that he is a persona non grata as Prime minister in the rural areas. The MMM with Bérenger as PM is not the pulling power with the rural electorate. His hindu adversaries «pou tir so manze» as Navin Ramgoolam had done in 2005― «pouvwar pe sap dan ou lame, kamarads» because he was in the elections as Prime minister. A slogan purely communal against his skin to section of the population to prevent him from becoming Prime minister again, and that in spite of the fact that he was in an alliance with the MSM. And now just imagine the fate of Ton Polo between Pravind and Navin in 2019 along with the helping hand of the ‘socio-culturels’. They will make mincemeat of Ton Polo and his party.
Today Bérenger has lost his credibility. He talks only «pour épater la galerie, surtout après ses pirouettes politiques en 2014» to ally himself with Navin Ramgoolam. After spitting into the soup of their opponents, some are even ready to swallow it if this can serve their interests. For the elections of 2019, the locomotive of Bérenger will shrink into a mere wagon ready to be hooked up to a driving force.
Concerning the «leader Rouge» the country has had a surfeit of his mismanagement during his primeministership. The country definitely stepped back under the leadership of Navin Ramgoolam which was marked by an acute incompetence, «maja karo» along with a Prime minister of extravaganza― Rolls-Royce, premier ministre de classe, all these while his country was going to the dogs. I don’t see any patriot or progressist who has at heart the interest of his country would like to see his country drift into the hands of Navin Ramgoolam and his party again unless there is a change of leadership, but this will not be case because Navin «est un accrocheur.»
All those who are now shouting from the roof-tops that they will be the driving force for the elections in 2019 will be reduced to a mere political wagon ready to stoop down to a partner who will pull them to avoid a thrashing.
Just wait and see!
By Raj Paneken
