I think the pressure on Minister of Tourism Anil Gayan to leave the government and the National Assembly should start relenting now. The guy has no intention of leaving nor is there any valid reason for him to step down.

This is not the first time Gayan has criticised a foreign country without any provocation whatsoever, mistaking individuals for countries. Last time, the minister made some very disparaging comments about Morocco – which are still in the Hanshard. As for his open racism, it has been expressed on so many occasions that I have lost count. The worst instance is that of stopping the methadone distribution as an act of retaliation against those who had voted for the MMM’s Rajesh Bhagwan, who beat him to the first position. That statement in itself is extremely dangerous and has to be the most racist utterance heard since “Démons”. It first presupposes that drugs are the monopoly of one community which, as everyone knows, is preposterous. It is also based on the racist and inane belief that those who voted for his fellow candidate all come from one community. At the same time, it betrays a terrible spirit of revenge using taxpayers’ money to settle one’s own personal petty scores. A spirit, I must say, characteristic of this government. 

We should have revolted then but we didn’t. The then prime minister should have had the guts to immediately tell Gayan to get lost. But he didn’t. Instead, Anerood Jugnauth himself justified this terrible act by dismissing it as a joke. And of course we all found cracking a joke about a scourge that is destroying our society and decimating our families hilarious. Drug abuse, a lifetime of dependence and broken lives are great topics to joke about, aren’t they? 

Then he made another racist joke about Shakeel Mohamed, “a non-Hindu” being the leader of the Labour Party parliamentary group. He came back with another equally racially-motivated comment when we dared object to the cushy job offered to his ‘close friend’, Vijaya Sumputh. He stated that the criticism was directed at her just because she was ‘a Hindu woman’.

“Being in the nice company of the Tarolahs, Rutnahs, Hurreerams, Montys, Wongs, Husnoos, Koonjoos, Boygahs… is the best punishment one could wish upon him. It is a slow honour killing.”

Now, as a minister, Gayan has been very good at travelling and milking the state. You mention it, he’s attended it. Even Le Festival de Cannes was a great opportunity for him ‘to promote our country’. Would you like to know what he brought us back from the costly travels we have been paying for? Here is the answer of Jocelyn Kwok, CEO of the AHRIM: “1.2% drop in arrivals in the first quarter and the fall of some 11% in revenue.”¹ Worse: “Negative growth, crisis, regression… The truth is the truth: the [tourism – Ed] sector has never been so vulnerable and the future so uncertain.”²  

So what do we expect today? That Gayan’s leader, Ivan Collendavelloo, calls him to order? LOL! Collendavelloo hasn’t even dared call to order his more junior member, Ravi Rutnah, who everyone heard calling him “vieux cou…on” (old idiot) and asking for him not to be included in the list of candidates for the next election. All poor old Ivan could do was walk out during Rutnah’s speech in parliament. Big deal! Or do we perhaps expect the non-elected prime minister to show some leadership and ask Gayan to step down and leave the National Assembly? Big LOL! Can’t you see that Raj Dayal has cost us Rs15 million to keep in his seat? That Roubina Jadoo-Jaunbocus, Kalyan Tarolah, Yogida Sawmynaden, Showkutally Soodhun, Sudhir Sesungkur… are still members of the MSM and are sitting pretty in the National Assembly despite all their blunders and the accusations against them? Oh, and perhaps you have forgotten but Sanjeev Teeluckdharry is still an MP drawing a Rs145,000 salary. Have you ever seen him in the National Assembly since he lost his seat as deputy speaker in July 2018? Neither have we, except for a couple of very brief appearances to keep his salary flowing into his bank account! Has anyone called him to order? Don’t be silly! There is no captain onboard. 

So Gayan has my full support to stay in the National Assembly and continue more of the same. Being in the nice company of the Tarolahs, Rutnahs, Hurreerams, Montys, Wongs, Husnoos, Koonjoos, Boygahs… is the best punishment one could wish upon him. It is a slow honour killing. 

1.Le Défi, 23 May 2019 
2.Le Mauricien, 28 May 2019

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