Our perennial passivity in the face of political incompetence is often compounded with the lack of creativity and willingness of critics in offering solutions. There is a number of reasons for that. Critics revel in riding the wave of disenfranchisement inflicted on the proletariat while also indulging in their own biases. Not in ideas but in their own preferred leaders. In the current political landscape, criticism brings fame. Solutions would seem counterintuitive for those who have been thrown into the spotlight in the last few years of political chaos.

The unfortunate reality is that almost all of us have been passive critics at some point in our lives. It is much easier than disrupting the status quo. For our island to go forward, this needs to change. There is arguably no better place to start thinking about change than by going through the inadequacies of our mainstream political parties.

In an ideal world, mainstream political parties would focus on debating issues of urgency during this crucial electoral campaign. Issues ranging from gender inequality and climate change to political and educational reforms. Instead what we have been treated to is a vulgar parade of individuals hoping to get the golden ticket from their leaders, with no clear indication of their ideological inclinations.

The hope is for nontraditional parties to break the hegemony of mainstream parties. It could help in bringing back some sanity in the pit of mediocrity and madness we have recently seen in Parliament. If not, the solution might be found with the Mouvement Militant Mauricien (MMM). This is not an endorsement but a call for a reasonable electoral strategy that could potentially benefit the country.

Regardless of what the MMM faithful would like to believe, the most likely outcome of the general elections is a victory for either the coalition led by Pravind Jugnauth or the coalition led by Navin Ramgoolam. However, both Jugnauth and Ramgoolam have been wary in asserting that this will be straightforward. The MMM’s decision to go on its own seems to have swung the momentum back in its favour in its urban strongholds. Toolsyraj Benydin’s reaction to being parachuted into Rajesh Bhagwan’s constituency seemed to confirm that general feeling.

Science-fiction

If voters head to the polls with that trend in mind, it would not be science-fiction to imagine the two main coalitions getting most seats but failing to gain a majority due to an MMM upsurge in the urban constituencies. This has been suggested by a number of political observers who have identified the MMM as a lynchpin for a post-electoral coalition that would see the party led by Paul Bérenger deciding on who gets to become the next Prime Minister. This proposal has been dismissed by the leader of the MMM but there might be another outlet available to him.

The MMM has gone through an existential crisis in recent years following unsuccessful coalitions. While it is struggling to get back the trust of its supporters, a post-electoral coalition could destroy all of that again. In that case, the MMM could opt for another type of agreement to get past a potential stalemate, one that helped Theresa May stay in power following the 2017 general elections in the UK.

Having failed to gain a majority, May’s Conservative Party signed a confidence-and-supply agreement with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). It meant that the DUP remained in the opposition but voted with the Conservative Party on matters of confidence and thus provided numerical support for a minority government.

The MMM could seek to do the same. It would remain in opposition, would have no post-electoral privileges but would have a voice in the next government’s decision-making. For example, the MMM could suggest its own amendments for an electoral reform. It would also force the government to respect the separation of powers where the legislative is not always at the mercy of the executive.

There is obviously a major weakness to those suggestions. For them to work, politicians need to stand for something other than their own personal gains. Trying to find an ounce of political ideology in the politicians in Parliament was an impossible task last time around. It could still be the best case scenario where government and opposition is forced to work together.