Weekly speaks to Shyam Roy to ask what he has been doing since he retired as the CEO of Emtel last year.  He shares with us his observations of the country and the political scene and offers some suggestions on how to perhaps improve the situation.

Since you left Emtel, you have been very quiet. How have you been using your time?

Since I left the very hectic life at Emtel a year ago, I have managed to find time to focus on things other than telecom and information and communications technology (ICT) and also be more aware of what else is happening in Mauritius. So today, if I had to do a situation analysis, it is very saddening to note that 48 years after independence, the citizens of Mauritius still don’t have all their basic needs and requirements – something which has been promised by successive governments. Water is still not available 24/7 and the same promises are made after every drought season and forgotten after the rainy season.  We still have the yearly threats of blackouts in provision of electricity.  Queues and the service in hospitals and the healthcare system are still terrible and not improving whilst the cost of private clinics is exorbitant. As for the transport system, although there is a slight improvement through the introduction of better buses (and here I must highlight that Rose Hill Transport is quite innovative), it’s still a hell of a life for people travelling by public transport. We keep hearing about Marshall Plans for the eradication of poverty and many other things but nothing happens thereafter. The education system keeps changing with every other government but are we getting real ‘educated’ citizens?

Whose fault it that? Successive governments?

Absolutely. But now I see it’s really getting to a level which is beyond what the citizens can take. It’s too much.

Too much of what?

Too much of the things that are being promised and not implemented; too many actions against people who speak the truth and too much lack of action for the poor citizens of Mauritius.  

What exactly are you referring to?

I’ll give you one example… There is so much talk about smart cities, Cyber Island and blah, blah, blah. Now when someone is over 60, he has to “apply” for the government pension. First, why should the person apply, because he has an ID card with all the information, so in a smart island, he should get his pension automatically – the only info that should be provided is a bank account number. Instead, the citizen has to go and apply in person in a Pensions/Social Security office in the location where he was born with all originals and copies of documents which contain information already available at the Social Security office.  Everything could have been done online.  Is this a Smart Mauritius?  Far from it!

There’s a chance you may not continue to draw a pension in the first place. How do you feel about that?

I think, in all fairness, people above a certain income level should not get the government old age pension… Only people in the lower bracket who deserve it should. The problem is how do you draw the line?

By targeting those who deserve it, surely?

Who deserves and who doesn’t? The prime minister is getting his pension, right? He’s being paid as an employee and he’s getting a pension. Is he deserving?

You’ve been observing politics for a while now. What do you see that has happened over this year that has made you smile, and what has made you feel very sad for the country?

Well, I haven’t been smiling too much recently, except for the standup comedies by politicians on the MBC evening news. When you look at parliamentary debates, you feel really sad but also irritated. That level of debate, or rather the reading of answers, does not add any value.  Some of the parliamentary questions are not pertinent.

How about the answers?

It’s a very interesting question. Often we hear answers like “I need to check” or “I will enquire and come back with an answer”.  But the answer, most of the time, never comes!  As for the prime minister not being aware of anything, it’s shockingly irrational.  He should know more about what is going on than anyone else. He is the prime minister. He has an Intelligence Service at his disposal. That is what prime ministers and presidents all over the world have. Obama seems to know more than anyone else about the Russians’ involvement in the US elections. Here, the prime minister comes and says that he is not aware, that he has not been informed. It’s disappointing coming from someone who earned lots of respect.

What do you think of the idea of handing over the prime ministership to his son. Are you one of those who think that what is legal is not moral or as long as it is legal, everything is alright?

Well, I’m not an expert in the matter to be able to say what is legal or not. Morally, however, I am against dynasties, unless the people of Mauritius say, ‘yes you’re the one that we want’. Every citizen has the right to become PM if he has the right background, skills and experience. It should not be reserved for the Jugnauths and Ramgoolams! Why not the Roys or the Prayags?  It’s the people of Mauritius who should decide.

To come back to the question of smiling, you say that you haven’t been smiling much these days. What about crying?

When I saw what happened to Megh Pillay and the way he was asked to leave [Ed-Air Mauritius] in order to retain someone with much less merit, I feel like crying!

Who do you think took the decision? Pravind Jugnauth or his father?

From what I read, I Pravind Jugnauth said that he was aware of the decision. If I were the PM, I would have made sure that Megh Pillay remained in his position for the good of Air Mauritius. You know, if all these parliamentarians were truly working for the good of Mauritius, then, instead of making petitions to change their caterer for better food, they should have signed a petition to retain Megh! This is a government-owned company.  

What about the British American Investment (BAI) saga. Do you think it was handled properly?

I think the BAI issue had to be tackled but the way it was handled was a bit unorthodox and barbaric. People lost their money and their jobs overnight.  

There was a lot of arrests and provisional charges. In the end, we see that most of the charges have been dropped.

I have observed that the first thing people do when they get into power is to take revenge on past ones but more so recently.  I would have much more respect for any new government that starts to look at the bigger picture first and prioritising action to improve Mauritius rather than tackle the petty things first! Look at the time and money wasted in courts to come to a no-case after years!

They say the country was rotten and they could not build on rotten foundations. They have to clean it first and then build on good foundations. Does that convince you?

No. By doing what they did, at the end of the day, they became worse than the former government.

What is worse than before?

You know, one of the few things I was very happy to see at the beginning of this government’s mandate was the introduction of a Ministry for Good Governance. But then the first thing they did was appoint their friends and families etc. So is it good governance for others only? Charity begins at home! I think all new MPs, including ministers, have to be trained in communication skills, leadership and how to work with the public and civil servants. I feel that often the ego takes over and immaturity shows through and then it’s a disaster.   

When this government was voted in, it benefitted from a lot of good will and then things started changing gradually.  What was the turning point in your case?

I think for me, this government did not win the election. People wanted more to get rid of the past government which was overconfident it was going to win. So, when the Alliance Lepep came to power, I guess to their own surprise, they had to select the best amongst their lot (together with their communal formulae) to be ministers. 

Were you disappointed?

I didn't expect much because there are not many ‘drivers’. If I look at the meeting between the government, private sector, employees and syndicates, tripartite, why is it happening now in December 2016 for an increase to be given next month? Why was it not done much earlier when the budget was being worked out? If this is how the government works then there is no long-term planning. When I was at Emtel, we had a long-term strategic plan then a five-year more detailed plan and of course, a very detailed one-year budget plan with a detailed action plan which was monitored on a weekly and monthly basis. The budget plan was prepared up to six months in advance.  That's the way the government should work. Mauritius should also have a long-term solid plan. And whenever government changes, the overall long-term strategy should be the same, unless there are improvements.  

The competence of the ministers being what it is, what should be done?

The minister himself announced that foreign investment is low and, frankly, I don't see how they will improve it. If I were them, I would get a team of competent and knowledgeable people – even if they belong to other parties – and ask them to help draw a long-term strategy and then from there, a shorter strategy, have a good team to monitor results. 

Do you think that is likely to happen?

I have some apprehension because the attitude in Mauritius has to change. I have met lots of very competent, experienced and knowledgeable people in the government civil service but unfortunately, their voices are not heard, they are not encouraged to voice their opinion or their opinions are suppressed. We don’t always need experts from overseas. We have them amongst our own people. Our leaders tend to believe costly foreign experts and consultants more than our own skilled local citizens.    

What about the previous government? Did it have the kind of long-term strategy you are talking about?

Well, at least in terms of roads, there has been a huge improvement. I live in the east and the road network built by the previous government has substantially improved the time I used to spend in traffic.   It's really good for the people using the routes on a daily basis.  A good long-term road improvement plan did exist.

However, I need to point out that when all these road developments were planned, I had asked the responsible people to ensure that ducts were laid along all these routes to enable easy fibre optic deployment as a backbone in Mauritius. That did not happen!

As far as the political situation is concerned, is anything likely to improve in your opinion?

Judging by the national assembly debates, the opposition, except Paul Bérenger – who comes up with solid PQs from time to time on key issues – the rest are sleeping.

Do you mean Aadil Ameer Meea, Rajesh Bhagwan, Shakeel Mohamed… are also sleeping?

They ask some interesting questions but I am not sure there is a good flow in the PQ strategy. I mean the opposition is disjointed. It’s not acting as a team.

Is the majority united?    

In the majority party, all the members of the legislative assembly (MLAs) are more like yes men, always afraid to question things. Everyone should be able to have his personal opinion and express it rather than blindly toeing the party line. If you look at other countries like the UK, France, etc. MPs do speak their mind when they disagree. Otherwise why are you in parliament? Why waste time in parliament asking stupid questions and wasting more time in reading long answers. The answers to non-relevant questions could have been circulated.

Do you think anything is likely to change?

I’m afraid not. I don’t see any change coming. I’ve been asking myself why the opposition is not waking up. Why the people of Mauritius are not waking up. We should not be afraid to speak the truth. And I do hope the leaders change their attitude for their own good too, and respect good governance and the wishes of the people of Mauritius.

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