On Wednesday, the Minister of Commerce, Yogida Sawmynaden announced his resignation. Thursday, this close to the Prime Minister was replaced by Soodesh Callichurn, Minister of Labor, who will assume the interim pending a possible appointment. Despite everything, the government is under pressure.
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The crises follow one another at a frantic pace on the sister island. The Covid made the front page of the Mauritian press last year, non-stop, from March to July, then the MV Wakashio ran aground on the Pointe-d’Esny coral reef causing a tide unprecedented black. This environmental tragedy has worsened the financial situation of Mauritians. The country has been forced to close the airport and requisition its hotels to fight the pandemic. This health strategy limited the spread of the virus, but had tragic consequences on the lives of citizens. Many families were left with no income or just a few rupees to survive.
Aid and business support measures limited the damage, but did not prevent the economic crisis as explained Mauritius Express.
An inevitable political crisis
As too often, troubles have the prodigious tendency to happen in groups. The Mauritian government has been shaken since the beginning of 2021 by the Kistnen affair. Trade Minister Yogida Sawmynaden resigned his post at the end of the day on Wednesday. He is implicated in this case. The first part of this file is criminal.
The deputy of the 8th constituency is often referred to as the sponsor of the alleged murder of Soopramanien Kistnen. The lifeless body of this 52-year-old entrepreneur was found charred in a field of Moka cane. The first autopsy had concluded a suicide. Apart from rumors that, for the moment, nothing links the chosen one to this tragedy.
The ex-minister claims his innocence, but does not explain himself
At the end of the morning on Wednesday, well before returning his morocco, Yogida Sawmynaden had presented himself to the Barracks to be questioned by the inspectors of the Criminal Section on the alleged fictitious employment of Simla Kistnen. This hearing did not take place. The suspect’s lawyers have made legal arguments against it.
If this approach is logical and fully complies with the code of criminal procedure in force in Mauritius, it is disastrous in public opinion. Every day, in the sister island, as in Reunion, litigants do not benefit from the same “legal protection”. The competence of lawyers is not in question, but depending on the means available to the suspect, the number of interveners and their availability vary greatly.
At the end of the day, the former Minister of Commerce presented his resignation to the Prime Minister. This approach was formalized during a press conference during which the elected official reaffirmed his innocence as we wrote on Thursday.
This announcement leads to a reshuffle. Minister of Labor Soodesh Callichurn now in charge of Ministry of Commerce reveals Mauritian.
Soodesh Callichurn, Minister of Labor and Trade of Mauritius
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