Weekly’s ultimate 2016 quiz is an opportunity for our readers to re-live the past year in an original way. Who among you paid the most attention to current affairs this year? This is your chance to find out. Good luck, and may the best Mauritian win! 

1. Before the conflict between Roshi Bhadain and Vishnu Lutchmeenaraidoo reached the Independent Commission Against Corruption, what did Bhadain say when asked if the relationship between them was cold? 
A. “Ice, ice, baby.” 
B. “It’s so hot in Mauritius that I don’t have time to be cold”. 
C. “Chilly but not quite frozen.” 

2. How did the prime minister explain the cabinet reshuffle in March, when several ministers were assigned new ministries? 
A. “It’s just so that I can make my baby boy prime minister soon.” 
B. “I have no explanations to give.” 
C. “A minister resigned, so I had to take action.” 

3. Which celebrity visited Mauritius with the circus? 
A. The world’s tallest man. 
B. The world’s smallest fish. 
C. The world’s most well-travelled housing and lands minister. 

4. Why was Hassenjee Ruhomally arrested? 
A. He posted a joke about a minister’s bad breath on Twitter. 
B. He refused to accept a minister’s request to follow him on Instagram. 
C. He shared a post about a minister’s hospital bill on Facebook. 

5. What is the official reason why Mauritius isn’t allowed to exercise sovereignty over the Chagos islands? 
A. The population of white sharks that live there can only be contained by British scientists. 
B. Chagos is needed for the defence of the west. 
C. Mauritius is a tiny dot on the world map that no superpower gives two hoots about. 

6. What was the slogan that Omega Ark chose for the Apollo Bramwell Hospital before the fiasco came to light? 
A. A new beginning is near. 
B. A new beginning is a dream. 
C. A new beginning is about to start. 

7. Why was Weekly’s editor-in-chief, Touria Prayag, banned from parliament for a month? 
A. She offended all MPs by saying that they desperately need healthier eating habits and more physical exercise. 
B. She set the National Assembly building on fire while singing “burn, baby, burn” in a loud voice. 
C. She wrote an opinion piece criticising the speaker, Maya Hanoomanjee. 

8. Doctors in the public sector threatened to go on a general strike. Why? 
A. The hospitals were dirty and full of rats. 
B. They said that the new shift system tired them out and made them ill. 
C. They said that the minister of health was clueless about everything related to health. 

9. What was the authorities’ reaction to the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak? 
A. Affected farms were not allowed to sell their animals, to stop the outbreak from spreading further. 
B. Farms were allowed to sell animals that appeared healthy, although there was no guarantee that they weren’t contaminated. 
C. The government financed a costly awareness campaign in an attempt to make people eat chicken instead. 

10. How did Opposition Leader Paul Bérenger refer to the government after the numerous scandals that made headlines this year? 
A. As a public danger. 
B. As a trouble-making machine. 
C. As a broken-dreams factory. 

11. How did vice-prime minister and self-proclaimed Minister of Hajj, Showkutally Soodhun, react when Mauritian pilgrims raised some issues about the Hajj organisers? 
A. He threated to have them jailed in Saudi Arabia if they weren’t “disciplined.” 
B. He thanked them, saying that any feedback aiming to improve the pilgrims’ experience is helpful. 
C. He asked the commissioner of police to have them arrested on a provisional public mischief charge. 

12. How well did Mauritian universities fare in the annual World University Rankings by QS this year? 
A. The University of Mauritius was ranked first in Africa. 
B. No Mauritian university made the top 900 list. 
C. The University of Mauritius was ranked 203rd. 

13. How much was paid to Kailash Trilochun, lawyer and brother-in-law of Nando Bodha, when he represented the ICTA in a legal case against Emtel Ltd? 
A. Rs13 million 
B. Rs19 million 
C. Rs10 million 

14. Which advertising brand caused much controversy earlier this year? 
A. Pepsi 
B. Coca-Cola 
C. Phoenix beer 

15. Which two projects of the previous government have been cancelled and then brought back to the table? 
A. Penalty Point system and Heritage City. 
B. Smart Cities and Light Rail project. 
C. Penalty Point System and Light Rail project. 

16. Who has been absent the most in parliament? 
A. Showkutally Soodhun 
B. Anerood Jugnauth 
C. Vishnu Lutchmeenaraidoo 

17. What did the minister of health say on the use of synthetic drugs in the country? 
A. They are not dangerous. 
B. They are extensively used in schools. 
C. They have not caused any deaths. 

18. What was the prime minister’s reaction to Megh Pillay’s dismissal from Air Mauritius? 
A. I don’t know anything 
B. I am looking into the matter. 
C. They have to explain such a decision. 

19. How many times has Ameenah Gurib Fakim travelled abroad since she became the president of Mauritius? 
A. Nine 
B. 19 
C. 29 

20. What was the explanation given by Minister of Housing and Lands Showkutally Soodhun of why the Pomponette beach had been privatised? 
A. It is a very ugly beach which is too dangerous for Mauritians to swim in. 
B. We need to create jobs. 
C. They offered me a handsome commission. 

21. What reason did Xavier-Luc Duval give for the PMSD leaving government? 
A. He wanted his own papa/piti deal. 
B. Disagreements over the Prosecution Commission bill. 
C. Dan Baboo told him to. 

22. Why was Shakeel Mohamed kicked out of parliament on Wednesday 21 December? 
A. He spoke. 
B. He protested about not being on the orators’ list for the Sports bill. 
C. He told Speaker Maya Hanoomanjee that he liked the sound of her voice. 

[ Answers ] 
1:B, 2:B, 3:A, 4:C, 5:B. 6:C. 7:C, 8:B, 9:B, 10:A, 11:A, 12:B, 13:B. 14:B, 15:C, 16:C, 17:C, 18:A, 19:C, 20:A, 21:B, 22:B