Paul Bérenger, leader of the MMM, Xavier-Luc Duval, leader of the Opposition and the PMSD, and Nando Bodha, leader of the Rassemblement mauricien (RM), held a press conference at the office of the leader of the Opposition in Port-Louis yesterday. They briefly commented on the arrest of Bruneau Laurette and his son Ryan Laurette on Friday, November 4, 2022, saying they would follow the case while the investigation takes its course.
The opposition leader, who was with the leaders of the MMM and PMSD, returned to the theme of his Private Notice Question on Thursday. He said that the government’s decision to allow the import of Rs 460 million worth of rolling papers was a “mistake”. He called it a “huge scandal”. It is clear, he said, that this product was intended to be sold on the local market. It was going to be used, he said, for the consumption of synthetic drugs. “The whole thing reeks of corruption,” he said. He said he was basing this on the fact that the minister started by defending his minister’s decision before saying that he himself was astonished and that he had asked his permanent secretary to go and lodge a complaint with the Icac.
Xavier-Luc Duval also spoke on the the Oiseau du Paradis case. He said that he expected the Minister for Gender Equality to expand the terms of reference of the Fact Finding Committee. He added that he is concerned about the independence of this body. He said he does not understand how a committee, chaired by a senior ministry official, can investigate the same ministry. “Through the National Children’s Council, it is the ministry that manages the Bird of Paradise,” said Xavier-Luc Duval. He added that the opposition is calling for a magistrate to take charge of the case. “But for us, it is clear that the solution is the foster family. The solution is also adoption. We need an Adoption Bill that will facilitate adoption. That is the future,” he said.
