Mauritius holds parliamentary election with cost of living crisis key issue

About a cardinal group are expected to take 62 members to parliament pinch modular of surviving situation connected apical of voters’ mind.

People successful Mauritius are casting their ballots successful the parliamentary election that has been clouded by a wire-tapping scandal.

Polls opened astatine 7am (03:00 GMT) and adjacent astatine 6pm (14:00 GMT) connected Sunday successful nan 12th predetermination since independency from nan United Kingdom successful 1968. Results are expected connected Monday.

There are astir 1 cardinal registered voters who will elite 62 members to nan National Assembly, pinch nan costs of surviving situation topping nan predetermination issues successful nan Indian Ocean archipelago.

Whichever statement aliases conjugation gets much than half nan seats successful parliament besides wins nan premier minister’s post.

Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth’s Militant Socialist Movement statement arsenic good arsenic nan guidance parties person promised to reside nan rumor successful 1 of nan astir prosperous nations successful Africa.

Jugnauth is seeking predetermination a period aft a historical statement that saw nan UK cede sovereignty of nan Chagos Islands to Mauritius pursuing a long-running dispute.

A banner successful support of Alliance du Changement statement is seen during a run rally led by erstwhile Prime Minister and campaigner Navin Ramgoolam successful Port Louis connected November 3, 2024, up of nan wide election.[Laura Morosoli/AFP]

But nan leak of secretly recorded telephone calls of politicians, diplomats and journalists has dealt a rustle to Jugnauth’s party.

In consequence to nan scandal, nan authorities connected November 1 announced a societal media prohibition until aft nan election.

But an uproar from nan guidance and section media forced an embarrassing about-turn wrong 24 hours.

Campaigning has been tense, and constabulary person been deployed astatine polling stations to guarantee security, according to Electoral Commissioner Irfan Rahman, arsenic media reports said concerns astir electoral fraud were emerging.

The African Union has sent a 30-member perceiver ngo to nan federation touted arsenic 1 of Africa’s astir unchangeable democracies.

Cost of surviving crisis

The state of astir 1.3 cardinal group markets itself arsenic a nexus betwixt Africa and Asia, deriving astir of its revenues from a flourishing offshore financial sector, tourism and textiles.

It has forecast 6.5 percent economical maturation this twelvemonth compared pinch 7 percent past twelvemonth but galore voters are not emotion nan benefits.

Jugnauth’s Alliance Lepep conjugation has promised to raise minimum wages, summation pensions and trim value-added taxation connected immoderate basal goods.

It says it will usage payments from nan UK nether an October statement for Britain to cede nan Chagos Islands while retaining nan US-UK Diego Garcia airbase.

“The confederation led by nan premier curate is trading nan economical prosperity card, pinch promises of much money to different segments of nan population,” said governmental expert Subash Gobine.

The opposition, dominated by nan Alliance of Change conjugation led by Navin Ramgoolam, has besides promised to summation pensions, present free carrier and net services and trim substance prices.

Source

:

Al Jazeera and news agencies