'De l'Esprit des Lois' was published in 1748 by Baron de Montesquieu and, amongst many other things, advocated the Rule of Law and the separation of constitutional powers as the prerequisites for any democracy. Rule of Law is associated with other concepts, such as the presumption of innocence, protection from double jeopardy which ensures that no one can be punished more than once for every specific crime committed, and, crucially, equality before the law, i.e. all individuals are given the same rights without distinction to their social stature, religion, political opinions, etc. As Montesquieu said, "law should be like death, which spares no one."

What do we find in Paradise Island? A land torn apart by the twin evils of corruption and patronage purulently infecting every layer of an obscenely stratified society, and where the rich and powerful ruthlessly exploit the privileges that can only exist in a plutocracy. It really does take the breath away when self serving individuals postulate the notion that all is well in the best of all possible worlds and that to argue the opposite is tantamount to a betrayal of the motherland; and all because of the shameless search for a position that they delude themselves into thinking will match their hitherto unrecognized skills. Samuel Johnson's comment in 1775 that "patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel" is strikingly appropriate and relevant to the delusional poseurs who nowadays regularly cloak self interest with a smug and expedient patriotic pretence.

A cursory analysis of Mauritian society throws up the indisputable fact that there is a state within a state in Paradise Island, a small but virtually untouchable domain that is oblivious to the laws that apply to all other citizens. We have a political class that has become entrenched at the heart of Mauritian politics, government, and society; this political class has emerged since independence to become the dominant force in our lives, and pursues its own sectional interests that are often against the national interest. Dynasties are established, and every effort is made to maintain the advantages accrued by the previous generation. All mainstream politicians belong to it, and this exclusive club where Ramgoolam, Berenger, the Jugnauths, the Boolells, etc., rub shoulders together with consummate ease will in time be reinforced by their progeny. The membership also includes advisers, failed electoral candidates, ex politicians who have grown immensely rich whilst servi nou pei, spin doctors, many journalists, and a large number of supposedly independent Civil Servants.

Politicians from different parties now have far more in common with each other than they have with the rest of the population; they will invariably set out to protect each other, and only a fool will accept as genuine or real the angry mood that they sometimes display towards each other in public. The true division that is now emerging in our society is between a narrow, self serving, corrupt political class and the mass of ordinary voters; we now have a political class that has become a separate, privileged elite, and therefore too isolated from our citizens in order to understand their aspirations and daily problems.

The political class is made up of people with hardly any connection or experience with the world outside politics; its members make government and how to win power their exclusive study and tend to have no significant experience of industry, commerce, or civil society. The culture of incompetence which has become a special hallmark of Mauritian governments is the direct result of the absence of any meaningful managerial experience among the political classes. Very serious decisions are made with a lack of elementary preparation or understanding on a scale which would be completely shocking in the private sector. No private clinic would spend a fortune on equipment that is then mothballed because there is apparently nobody competent enough to operate them, or the spare parts are suddenly impossible to obtain; and yet that is precisely what successive governments have done by spending hundreds of millions of our money on hospital equipment that is then criminally allowed to rust away in its original packaging. Everybody wants to buy property in Mauritius except our governments; they prefer to waste Rs 400 millions of our money every year in rent for buildings which no doubt belong to themselves, their families, or their close friends. State lands, which belong to us, become the private domain for whichever government we vote to power and are given away to the friends of the political class. Can you think of anywhere else in the world where a gorgeous piece of paradise like Ile aux Bénitiers is given to a family for the ludicrous sum of Rs 40,000 per year, a fraction of the price of the coconuts that grow freely on the trees there? Or where the flourish of the Housing Minister's signature allows the diving companion of the Prime Minister with an acute sensitivity to eight armed baby cephalopods to proclaim that Ilot Gabriel is now a private island, and all for only Rs 60,000 per year, an amount that he could conceivably make in only two days from forcing us to pay to visit what is already ours?

In this desperate, determined search for power, the political class in Mauritius will adopt any tactic in order to con the voter; ethics and morality are left a long way behind, and obfuscation and bare faced appeals to the baser instincts remain the methods of choice of those canvassing us to allow them to servi nou pei. This conscious perversion of Gestalt dynamics has resulted in the tragic fragmentation of our society where the different segments based on race, religion, and caste have been given far more importance than the primordial need to facilitate the emergence of a wholesome, healthy society based on fairness, equity, and the rule of law. Politicians seem more interested in listening to the raucous tunes of individual notes than to the mellifluous symphony of the ensemble…

The departure of the PMSD from the government was initially greeted with a degree of admiration for what appeared to be a principled stand against the virulent language used by the Prime Minister. That nice feeling was predictably too good to last. Maurice Allet, who seems to rejoice in putting his foot in his mouth every time he says anything, told us shortly afterwards that one of the reasons (probably the main one) was the impossibility of getting jobs for his followers in municipalities that exist apparently only for using our money in order to employ those who are considered not good enough to be advisors. In other words, what is the point of joining the government if nou bann cannot profit from the same nepotism and corruption that politicians from other parties seem to be reveling in? Readers will note that at no time did he mention silly things like qualifications or competence; in Paradise Island, the only thing that matters apparently is affiliation and allegiance to whichever political party is in power.

General elections are scheduled to take place in 2010, and already various politicians are jockeying for the best vantage position in order to stay in power; the question that the electorate needs to ask is simply this: will it make any difference to our lives and to the Mauritian society whether we stick with Ramgoolam or switch to whatever combination the opposition manages to manufacture? Our history since independence shows clearly that only one set of people is guaranteed to benefit from what is fast becoming a futile exercise in so called democratic choice; whichever party or combination of parties wins will result in the political class spreading its tentacles further into every aspect of our lives and consolidating the huge gains that it makes at every successive change of government. Those who have stolen vast amounts of public money during their mandate can rest assured that the new government will do absolutely nothing to force them to account for their new status as very rich individuals. Why? Because they too have dirty hands that still reek with the stench of corruption from the previous times we voted them to power.

The political class has infected every level of our society; everyone is constantly looking over their shoulders for the sharp knife wielded by incompetent, corrupt politicians wrapped up in the fantasy world of their gargantuan egos and who are only concerned with furthering their own interests. Paradise Island has been converted into a Kafkaesque nightmare where chamchas abound and view their dirty, obscene, traitorous work on behalf of their political masters as a badge of honour.

It simply does not matter whether Ramgoolam, Berenger, Ganoo (God help us!), Jugnauth, or any of the others who believe that they have a God given right to lead us, is the Prime Minister. They all form part of a unified political class that is only interested in helping themselves, their friends, and their relatives. They will vote large pensions for themselves, buy monstrosities on four wheels with our money, visit as many countries as possible, make a fortune out of per diem allowances, appoint an army of idiotic sycophants to positions of authority on contracts tailored specifically to make them very rich, give away our land to their dimoun, hobnob with the rich and powerful in luxury hotels and give them fiscal allowances that ignore the financial realities of the country, use a police force paid entirely with our money as a private army to satiate the demands of mastodonic egos, and, in a final kick to our teeth, appoint themselves and their friends as Grand Commanders of the Star and the Key.

And they will all tell you at the next elections that your interests are paramount, and nobody could possibly look after you better than themselves. And like fools, many of us will believe them.

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