Start from the very simple principle that whatever the spin-doctors don’t tell you, they don’t want you to know. Now apply that to the prime minister’s latest visit to India and the razzmatazz made around the success of the mission. Forget what you were told. Consider what you were not told. At least not directly.

We were told so much about the great magic of borrowing money from India without increasing public debt – a statement that makes one wonder why we don’t spend the rest of our lives borrowing, instead of digging into the state coffers. We could even sell the copyrighted recipe to other countries.

But assuming that we are gullible enough to swallow – hook, line and sinker – the remarkable farrago of lies and half-truths being tossed at us since Pravind Jugnauth’s return from India, that still leaves us with one important question: how is the colossal sum of Rs18 billion going to be spent? The answer to that question will become more and more opaque as projects start rolling out – if they do – and we start pressing for accountability.

What the spin-doctors didn’t dwell too much on is the Special Purpose Vehicle – that magic formula used to channel the borrowed money to the various projects. To start with, it is not one vehicle but quite a few. The exact number is not forthcoming. There will apparently be a different company for each project. Now, here’s my bone of contention.

First, all these companies are going to have a board of directors, a chairman, a CEO, staff etc. Well, guess who is standing in line with their CVs in hand! There is nothing in this government’s record to suggest that they will even consider that there might be anyone qualified for those positions other than their own relatives and close – in some cases, very close – friends. In fact, this is the first government in the history of this country which has openly admitted that meritocracy cannot be applied in all situations and that a lawyer with absolutely no experience in diplomacy – whose first days of appointment will start with a long maternity leave – is more qualified to be our ambassador to Australia than long-standing career diplomats! Don’t forget either the speaker’s daughter who is so competent that she found herself in a job she did not know existed or Anil Gayan’s son who was recruited as Head of Innovation of the SBM on his sheer competence when his own father did not even know that he had applied for the job! If you persist on keeping your hopes up for the unemployed youth with no political backing, just look at the recent appointment at the newly created SBM (Mauritius) Infrastructure Development Company Ltd and that will help you sober up. This is just the trailer of the new soap opera! 

Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, the companies to be set up will be private and will therefore not fall under the Public Procurement Act. What that means is that they can give contracts to whoever they like and pay themselves the salaries they wish. There will, of course, be no public accountability as the moment a question is asked in public or in parliament, the minister pressed for answers will trot out the weary old answer, “It’s a private company, so we are not allowed to disclose any information.” And that will be the end of it!

Thirdly, if these SPVs are not profitable – and the track record of state companies gives no reason for optimism – the taxpayer will have to pick up an even bigger tab!

The result of all this is Rs18 billion rupees borrowed in our name, to be paid for by our children and grandchildren, but which we have no say in. In other words, it can be spent as the blessed ones wish, no questions asked. So, it is indeed free money as they told us. What they didn’t tell us is for whom. 

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