It's the end of August, but how august is our legislative Assembly? And how safe?


Judging by certain incidents that occurred during the last weekend in the hogging joint of the said august assembly, more commonly known as the lunch room (although they use the same place for their night meals too) one could safely opine that the place is neither august nor safe.

And judging from the type of people who get access to that particular lunch room, one would be perfectly right to wonder whether this is really a place where honourable people meet to break bread after a good day's or night's debate in the Legislative Assembly. Some newspaper reporters were observing that even they are shunned like the plague in the vicinity of the lunchroom, let alone being admitted there - they who, by the very nature of their job, do generally get access almost anywhere.

And yet, two singular characters of doubtful reputation have been able to snake their way through the supposedly tight security to mingle, like VVIPS, with the August crowd of parliamentarians, ministers and others.

What's more, they have even been abetted in their attempt to physically assault one cabinet minister. We have in the past witnessed cases where parliamentarians have attacked other parliamentarians, ministers attacking simple MPs etc. But sleazy outsiders attacking ministers inside the lunch room is a phenomena that has never been heard of till Friday last.
But then, we are in the Republic of Mauritius, and the stench of rotten banana is pervading the atmosphere in many quarters.

However, such things should no longer surprise anybody.  Judging from the type of behaviour put up by the parliamentarians themselves during the sessions of the assembly, one can make out that there's no difference between them and the people they admit into the lunch room. Aren't people often judged by the company that keeps them ?

Bachoo bashing
It is probably no longer interesting or important to find out how or why the two Bachoo assaulters were present in the lunch room at the material time. Or still, whether they had premeditated their stunt. Let us say that Azie and Draboucan were there by a strange collaboration of chance and good luck.

But what were they reproaching the Minister of the Environment of? If ever you betray our beloved Prime Minister, we shall kill you,” they are reported to have threatened.

The obvious question that crops up is there such talk in the air? Is there such a probability that Bachoo betrays Navin Ramgoolam? Has he shown any such tendencies?

The fact remains that after the incident, the two brave self-appointed Navin defenders were allowed to quietly drive back home without in the least being perturbed by police or other security officers. It is only after Paul Bérenger mentioned the incident at a press conference that police started contemplating action.

Subsidiary question: Why does Bérenger seem to be so concerned? Is this an attempt at recuperating Bachoo in case the latter forsakes the Navin camp? Is this an indisious invitation to Bachoo? Is this Bérenger’s oft repeated signal that he is still on the lookout for a vaish to instal as Prime Minister?

On the other hand, the Labour bosses addressing a press conference, said it loud and clear, that in matters of violence at the assembly, they had no lesson to take from either Bérenger or his MMM. They were so strong and vehement in their assertion that they even sounded like saying that as far as violence was concerned, they could out do Bérenger.
 
But the taste they left in the ears of the reporters covering the press conference was that Azie and Draboucan were free to enter the lunch room as and when it pleased them, and that they could do anything to anybody there.